Abstract

UEMURA, Laercio; GRASSI, Newton César  and  CAZARIN, Luciane. Pneumococcal endocarditis of subacute evolution. Arq. Bras. Cardiol. [online]. 2001, vol.76, n.4, pp. 319-322. ISSN 0066-782X.  doi: 10.1590/S0066-782X2001000400006.

With the development of penicillin, Streptococcus pneumoniae has become an uncommon cause of bacterial endocarditis in adults. Subacute manifestation of pneumococcal endocarditis has been reported a few times in the literature, but most reports define the disease as acute, severe, and having a high mortality rate. We report the case of a 58-year-old male with subacute bacterial endocarditis due to Streptococcus pneumoniae. We stress the low frequency of this agent as a cause of endocarditis and the atypical evolution of this case. The pathophysiology, clinical manifestations and evolution, and the therapeutical options for this type of infection are also discussed.