Infective aortitis caused by Corynebacterium striatum in a patient with twice orthotopic heart transplantation

Abstract Background Infective aortitis (IA) with vegetation formation is a rare but potentially life-threatening complication in patients with heart transplantation (HTx). IA caused by Corynebacterium striatum (C. striatum) has scarcely been reported. Herein, we present a case of IA caused by C. str...

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Main Authors: Wei Xiang, Ling-Yun Kong, Peng Zou, Dong-Yan Shen, Xiu-Juan Wang, Fang Liu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2025-08-01
Series:BMC Infectious Diseases
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s12879-025-11431-2
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author Wei Xiang
Ling-Yun Kong
Peng Zou
Dong-Yan Shen
Xiu-Juan Wang
Fang Liu
author_facet Wei Xiang
Ling-Yun Kong
Peng Zou
Dong-Yan Shen
Xiu-Juan Wang
Fang Liu
author_sort Wei Xiang
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Background Infective aortitis (IA) with vegetation formation is a rare but potentially life-threatening complication in patients with heart transplantation (HTx). IA caused by Corynebacterium striatum (C. striatum) has scarcely been reported. Herein, we present a case of IA caused by C. striatum in a young man eight months after his second orthotopic HTx. Case presentation We present a case of IA caused by C. striatum in a young man eight months after his second orthotopic HTx. The clinical course was complicated by recurrent fever, persistent bacteremia, anemia, and multiple peripheral arterial embolisms. While transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) revealed normal cardiac valves and endocardium, transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) confirmed an intraluminal mass in the anastomotic site of ascending aortic. The patient declined surgical intervention but responded well to medical therapy. He got resolution of infection following 6 weeks of vancomycin and remained well upon 34 months of follow-up without recurrent fever or new embolic events. Conclusions This case highlights the importance of evaluating the anastomotic site of ascending aortic in the context of bacteremia for HTx recipients, especially when routine TTE shows no valvular or endocardial involvement.
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issn 1471-2334
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series BMC Infectious Diseases
spelling doaj-art-39991c207f99495ab3b1e3776536f2bf2025-08-24T11:10:09ZengBMCBMC Infectious Diseases1471-23342025-08-012511410.1186/s12879-025-11431-2Infective aortitis caused by Corynebacterium striatum in a patient with twice orthotopic heart transplantationWei Xiang0Ling-Yun Kong1Peng Zou2Dong-Yan Shen3Xiu-Juan Wang4Fang Liu5Cardiovascular center, Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital, School of Clinical Medicine, Tsinghua UniversityCardiovascular center, Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital, School of Clinical Medicine, Tsinghua UniversityCardiovascular center, Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital, School of Clinical Medicine, Tsinghua UniversityCardiovascular center, Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital, School of Clinical Medicine, Tsinghua UniversityCardiovascular center, Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital, School of Clinical Medicine, Tsinghua UniversityCardiovascular center, Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital, School of Clinical Medicine, Tsinghua UniversityAbstract Background Infective aortitis (IA) with vegetation formation is a rare but potentially life-threatening complication in patients with heart transplantation (HTx). IA caused by Corynebacterium striatum (C. striatum) has scarcely been reported. Herein, we present a case of IA caused by C. striatum in a young man eight months after his second orthotopic HTx. Case presentation We present a case of IA caused by C. striatum in a young man eight months after his second orthotopic HTx. The clinical course was complicated by recurrent fever, persistent bacteremia, anemia, and multiple peripheral arterial embolisms. While transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) revealed normal cardiac valves and endocardium, transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) confirmed an intraluminal mass in the anastomotic site of ascending aortic. The patient declined surgical intervention but responded well to medical therapy. He got resolution of infection following 6 weeks of vancomycin and remained well upon 34 months of follow-up without recurrent fever or new embolic events. Conclusions This case highlights the importance of evaluating the anastomotic site of ascending aortic in the context of bacteremia for HTx recipients, especially when routine TTE shows no valvular or endocardial involvement.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12879-025-11431-2Infective aortitisHeart transplantationCorynebacterium striatumVegetation
spellingShingle Wei Xiang
Ling-Yun Kong
Peng Zou
Dong-Yan Shen
Xiu-Juan Wang
Fang Liu
Infective aortitis caused by Corynebacterium striatum in a patient with twice orthotopic heart transplantation
BMC Infectious Diseases
Infective aortitis
Heart transplantation
Corynebacterium striatum
Vegetation
title Infective aortitis caused by Corynebacterium striatum in a patient with twice orthotopic heart transplantation
title_full Infective aortitis caused by Corynebacterium striatum in a patient with twice orthotopic heart transplantation
title_fullStr Infective aortitis caused by Corynebacterium striatum in a patient with twice orthotopic heart transplantation
title_full_unstemmed Infective aortitis caused by Corynebacterium striatum in a patient with twice orthotopic heart transplantation
title_short Infective aortitis caused by Corynebacterium striatum in a patient with twice orthotopic heart transplantation
title_sort infective aortitis caused by corynebacterium striatum in a patient with twice orthotopic heart transplantation
topic Infective aortitis
Heart transplantation
Corynebacterium striatum
Vegetation
url https://doi.org/10.1186/s12879-025-11431-2
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