Vegetation Length is Associated with Long-term Survival in Patients Treated Surgically for Infective Endocarditis.

Background: The impact of vegetation length on therapeutic decision-making and prediction of long-term survival of patients with infective endocarditis is a highly topical issue. The aim of the study was to clarify the impact of vegetation length greater than 10 mm on long-term survival treated surgically for infective endocarditis.

Methods: Patients treated surgically for infective endocarditis in our hospital from January 2006 to November 2022 and were successfully followed up were included in the retrospective analysis.

Results: 814 survivors discharged from our medical center were successfully followed up to the date of death or the end date of the research and allocated to a group with vegetation length <10 mm (n = 432) or ≥10 mm (n = 382). The average follow-up time was 75.1 ± 1.8 months. Multivariate analysis indicated vegetation length ≥10 mm was associated with 1-year and 5-year mortality. Multivariate analysis of Cox regression identified vegetation length ≥10 mm to be associated with all-time mortality. Multivariate analysis identified male gender, long time between symptoms and surgery, more preoperative left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and more preoperative aortic regurgitation to be associated with vegetation length ≥10 mm in infective endocarditis.

Conclusions: Our study indicated that vegetation length ≥10 mm was associated with long-term survival in patients treated surgically for infective endocarditis.