Epidemiological Changes and Improvement in Outcomes of Infective Endocarditis in Europe in the Twenty-First Century: An International Collaboration on Endocarditis (ICE) Prospective Cohort Study (2000-2012)

Introduction: Infective endocarditis (IE) has undergone important changes in its epidemiology worldwide.

Methods: The study aimed to compare IE epidemiological features and outcomes according to predefined European regions and between two different time periods in the twenty-first century.

Results: IE cases from 13 European countries were included. Two periods were considered: 2000-2006 and 2008-2012. Two European regions were considered, according to the United Nations geoscheme for Europe: Southern (SE) and Northern-Central Europe (NCE). Comparisons were performed between regions and periods. A total of 4195 episodes of IE were included, 2113 from SE and 2082 from NCE; 2787 cases were included between 2000 and 2006 and 1408 between 2008 and 2012. Median (IQR) age was 63.7 (49-74) years and 69.4% were males. Native valve IE (NVE), prosthetic valve IE (PVE), and device-related IE were diagnosed in 68.3%, 23.9%, and 7.8% of cases, respectively; 52% underwent surgery and 19.3% died during hospitalization. NVE was more prevalent in NCE, whereas device-related IE was more frequent in SE. Higher age, acute presentation, hemodialysis, cancer, and diabetes mellitus all were more prevalent in the second period. NVE decreased and PVE and device-related IE both increased in the second period. Surgical treatment also increased from 48.7% to 58.4% (p < 0.01). In-hospital and 6-month mortality rates were comparable between regions and significantly decreased in the second period.

Conclusions: Despite an increased complexity of IE cases, prognosis improved in recent years with a significant decrease in 6-month mortality. Outcome did not differ according to the European region (SE versus NCE).