Key result
Surgical repair successfully treats incidental LV apex rupture and pseudoaneurysm following Staphylococcus aureus septicaemia.
Case Report (n=1)
Cardiac rupture and pseudoaneurysm can occur as a clinically silent complication of Staphylococcus aureus septicaemia and pericarditis, highlighting the utility of echocardiographic follow-up.
Silent cardiac rupture may complicate Staph aureus septicaemia; supports targeted echocardiography but leaves open prospective validation.
A 35 year old woman with a long history of intravenous drug abuse presented to a local hospital with severe anaemia, fever, raised markers of inflammation, and positive blood cultures for Staphylococcus aureus. She responded to treatment with antibiotics with improvement in her symptoms and markers of inflammation. Four weeks later a "routine" echocardiogram showed a rupture of her left ventricular apex and a large pseudoaneurysm. There had been no deterioration in her symptoms or haemodynamic status to herald this new development. It was successfully repaired surgically and the patient made a good recovery.
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Osula et al. (2001) conducted a case report in Cardiac rupture caused by Staphylococcus aureus septicaemia and pericarditis (n=1). Surgical repair was evaluated on Clinical recovery. Surgical repair successfully treated an incidental left ventricular apex rupture and large pseudoaneurysm in a 35-year-old woman following Staphylococcus aureus septicaemia.
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