Infective endocarditis is a serious disease associated with high mortality despite recent advances in diagnosis and treatment. Aggregatibacter aphrophilus is a fastidious Gram-negative member of the HACEK organisms (Haemophilus spp., Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, Cardiobacterium hominis, Eikenella corrodens, and Kingella kingae). A. aphrophilus is associated with dental infections but has also been implicated in cases of infective endocarditis. We highlight the importance of a high index of suspicion in symptomatic patients with an initial negative blood culture, particularly in high-risk groups such as patients with congenital valve disease and prosthetic valve. The knowledge of this rare entity may lead to early diagnosis and appropriate management. We review the main characteristics of Aggregatibacter aphrophilus endocarditis reported in the medical literature.

Infective endocarditis is a serious disease associated with high mortality despite recent advances in diagnosis and treatment. Aggregatibacter aphrophilus is a fastidious Gram-negative member of the HACEK organisms (Haemophilus spp., Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, Cardiobacterium hominis, Eikenella corrodens, and Kingella kingae). A. aphrophilus is associated with dental infections but has also been implicated in cases of infective endocarditis. We highlight the importance of a high index of suspicion in symptomatic patients with an initial negative blood culture, particularly in high-risk groups such as patients with congenital valve disease and prosthetic valve. The knowledge of this rare entity may lead to early diagnosis and appropriate management. We review the main characteristics of Aggregatibacter aphrophilus endocarditis reported in the medical literature.

Infective endocarditis is a serious disease associated with high mortality despite recent advances in diagnosis and treatment. Aggregatibacter aphrophilus is a fastidious Gram-negative member of the HACEK organisms (Haemophilus spp., Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, Cardiobacterium hominis, Eikenella corrodens, and Kingella kingae). A. aphrophilus is associated with dental infections but has also been implicated in cases of infective endocarditis. We highlight the importance of a high index of suspicion in symptomatic patients with an initial negative blood culture, particularly in high-risk groups such as patients with congenital valve disease and prosthetic valve. The knowledge of this rare entity may lead to early diagnosis and appropriate management. We review the main characteristics of Aggregatibacter aphrophilus endocarditis reported in the medical literature.

Aims: Differentiation between patients with Takotsubo syndrome and acute coronary syndrome (ACS) remains a challenge. We performed a systematic review to identify and evaluate diagnostic predictive models to distinguish both conditions. Methods and results: We performed an electronic search in PubMed, EMBASE, and Scopus until January 2024. Observational studies that developed and/or validated multivariable diagnostic models to differentiate Takotsubo syndrome from ACS were included. The risk of bias was assessed using the Prediction model Risk Of Bias ASsessment Tool (PROBAST). We conducted a narrative synthesis of the performance measures of the diagnostic models evaluated in each study. In addition, a random-effects meta-analysis of the c-statistic with its 95% confidence interval (CI) of the InterTAK model was performed. Of 1015 articles, a total of 11 studies (n = 4552) were included...