
Get answers to your heart disease prevention questions.
Dr. Miller’s Bio | Q&A Archive
Endocarditis (culture-negative)
Preventive antibiotics are often given to people at risk for infectious endocarditis before dental procedures or surgeries involving the respiratory, urinary, or intestinal tract. The American Heart Association antibiotics before a dental procedure if you have:
Continued medical follow-up is recommended for people with a previous history of infectious endocarditis.
Persons who use intravenous drugs should seek treatment for addiction. If this is not possible, use a new needle for each injection, avoiding sharing any injection-related paraphernalia, and use alcohol pads before injecting to reduce risk.
Mandell GL, Bennett JE, Dolin R. Principles and Practice of Infectious Diseases. 6th ed. London: Churchill Livingstone; 2005; pp 975-1022.
Karchmer AW. Infective Endocarditis. In: Libby P, Bonow RO, Mann DL, Zipes DP, eds. Braunwald's Heart Disease: A Textbook of Cardiovascular Medicine. 8th ed. St. Louis, Mo: WB Saunders; 2007: chap 63.