Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) purulent pericarditis, characterised by frank pus collection or microscopic pyogenic effusion in the pericardium represents the most serious form of pericardial infection. The route of MRSA acquisition in pericardial abscess commonly occurs via the blood stream infection and it is more commonly observed among immunocompromised individuals. To date, diabetic foot ulcer infection rarely disseminates and becomes a nidus for pericardial infection. Herein, we report an unusual case of MRSA pericardial abscess in a 44-year-old man who presented at Hospital Seri Manjung, Malaysia with cardiac tamponade. Past medical history indicated that he was recently treated for infected diabetic foot ulcer with MRSA bacteraemia one week earlier. Despite adequate pericardial drainage and extended parenteral vancomycin therapy, this case ended in fatality on day 42 of admission due to nosocomial infection. It is hoped that this report serves to increase the vigilance among clinicians that diabetic foot ulcer infections have the potential to progress to pericardial abscess in the presence of MRSA bacteraemia, although they may appear seemingly innocuous at presentation. Systemic vancomycin must be instituted promptly when MRSA bacteraemia is confirmed in order to circumvent the propagation of MRSA.

INTRODUCTION: Melioidosis is caused by Burkholderia pseudomallei, a gram-negative aerobic bacillus, found in the soil and surface water. Treating melioidosis has been a challenge in district hospitals due to high usage of broad spectrum antibiotics and prolonged hospitalisation. This study is to review the patients’ demography, clinical presentations and microbiological data. METHODS: A 5-year retrospective study was carried out on patients admitted with culture positive for melioidosis from year 2013 to 2017 in Hospital Teluk Intan, Perak. RESULTS: There were a total of 46 confirmed cases of melioidosis. Majority of the patients were working in the agricultural and farming (28.6%), and factories (25.7%). Thirty-one patients had diabetes mellitus (71.1%). Presentations of patients with melioidosis included pneumonia (54.3%), skin and soft tissue infection (19.6%), deep abscesses (15.2%) and bone and joint infections (13%). An average of 5.8 days was needed to confirm the diagnosis of melioidosis via positive culture. However, only 39.4% of these patients were started on ceftazidime or carbapenem as the empirical therapy. The intensive care unit (ICU) admission rate for melioidosis was 46% and the mortality rate was 52%. Our microbial cultures showed good sensitivity towards cotrimoxazole (97.1%), ceftazidime (100%) and carbapenem (100%). CONCLUSION: Melioidosis carries high mortality rate, especially with lung involvement and bacteremia. Physicians should have high clinical suspicion for melioidosis cases to give appropriate antimelioidosis therapy early

INTRODUCTIONPercutaneous transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) has become an established therapy for inoperable and high-surgical-risk patients with severe aortic stenosis. Although TAVI in patients with degenerated surgical aortic bioprostheses (i.e. valve-in-valve TAVI) is increasingly reported in Western studies, such data is lacking in Asian patients. We describe the initial experience of valve-in-valve TAVI in Asia.

METHODSEight patients who underwent valve-in-valve TAVI due to degenerated aortic bioprostheses were enrolled. The mechanism of bioprosthetic valve failure was stenotic, regurgitation or mixed. All procedures were performed via transfemoral arterial access, using the self-expanding CoreValve prosthesis or balloon-expandable SAPIEN XT prosthesis.

RESULTSThe mean age of the patients was 71.6 ± 13.2 years and five were male. Mean duration to surgical bioprosthesis degeneration was 10.2 ± 4.1 years. Valve-in-valve TAVI was successfully performed in all patients. CoreValve and SAPIEN XT prostheses were used in six and two patients, respectively. There were no deaths, strokes or permanent pacemaker requirement at 30 days, with one noncardiac mortality at one year. All patients experienced New York Heart Association functional class improvement. Post-procedure mean pressure gradients were 20 ± 11 mmHg and 22 ± 8 mmHg at 30 days and one year, respectively. Residual aortic regurgitation (AR) of more than mild severity occurred in one patient at 30 days. At one year, only one patient had mild residual AR.

CONCLUSIONIn our experience of valve-in-valve TAVI, procedural success was achieved in all patients without adverse events at 30 days. Good clinical and haemodynamic outcomes were sustained at one year.

Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Aortic Valve ; surgery ; Aortic Valve Insufficiency ; surgery ; Aortic Valve Stenosis ; surgery ; Arteries ; Bioprosthesis ; Cardiac Catheterization ; methods ; Female ; Fluoroscopy ; Follow-Up Studies ; Heart Valve Prosthesis ; Heart Valve Prosthesis Implantation ; Hemodynamics ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pacemaker, Artificial ; Prosthesis Failure ; Severity of Illness Index ; Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement