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Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Is prophylaxis for endocarditis essential, or just a habit that's hard to break?

Is prophylaxis for endocarditis essential, or just a habit that's hard to break?
OCTOBER 17, 2008 Lisa Nainggolan

Oxford, UK - The issue of when, or even if, antibiotics should be given for the prevention of infective endocarditis (IE) has been the subject of much debate recently, with three clear schools of thought emerging. These have resulted in varying guidance from different organizations and countries, leading to much confusion.

For more than 50 years, in most Western countries, the administration of antibiotics as prophylaxis to those individuals at high risk of developing endocarditis has been routine before dental and other invasive surgical procedures. But at the beginning of this decade, scientists started to see a shift in the clinical and microbiologic profile of the disease, which led some to question whether the traditional practice of prophylaxis for all patients at risk should continue. Beginning a few years ago, certain organizations started to alter their recommendations, leading to the current situation./.../

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