Living with infective endocarditis

Living with IEWhen dentists hear the words infective endocarditis (IE), they often reflexively think of the same precaution: prophylactic antibiotics before dental treatment, 2g Amoxicillin or 500mg Clindamycin. IE is one of the few diseases our patients may develop following bacteremia from invasive dental procedures, but thankfully, its incidence is relatively rare. Some health conditions place patients at a higher risk for IE, such as an artificial heart valve, a cardiac transplant prone to developing valvulopathy or a congenital heart defect. Men over the age of 50 are also predisposed to developing IE. When we consider this fact, you might wonder: what are the chances that a 25 year old, healthy female could contract IE?