Heart Infection

Specialists with UK Gill Heart & Vascular Institute are experts at managing the infections that may impact the heart, including:

• Endocarditis
• Myocarditis
• Pericarditis

When these conditions are mild, they may resolve on their own. When they are more serious, surgery may be required. Our cardiovascular specialists are trained to provide the complete spectrum of heart surgeries to repair heart tissue and repair or replace valves that have been damaged by infection. A surgeon may also perform pericardiocentesis to drain excess fluid that has collected in the pericardium.

When appropriate, a cardiovascular specialist will work with you to design a medication-based treatment plan, which may include drugs for the following conditions:

• Endocarditis — antibiotics, antifungal medication, blood thinners
• Myocarditis — corticosteroids, heart failure medicine, intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG)
• Pericarditis. — anti-inflammatory, corticosteroids, IVIG

At the UK Gill Heart & Vascular Institute, we are dedicated to managing cardiovascular wellness through the most up-to-date therapies. Our clinicians take a bench-to-bedside approach to make sure that patients benefit from scientific advances. Our faculty and staff are also leaders in the complete spectrum of cardiovascular medicine, including biomedical engineering, cardiac and vascular surgery and pharmacology.

In 2014, we received the Get With The Guidelines® - Resuscitation Gold Quality Achievement Award from the American Heart Association. This award highlights excellence in improving patient outcomes from in-hospital cardiac arrest.