Fatigue and new murmur in a 15 year old after a catheter ablation procedure

Infective endocarditis is an atypical complication of pediatric cardiac catheterization procedures including electrophysiology study and ablation.

A 15-year-old male with neurogenic bladder who had undergone catheter ablation to treat ventricular tachycardia was subsequently diagnosed with endocarditis, likely stemming from post-procedure Enterococcus faecalis urinary tract infection and requiring extensive cardiac surgery.

Though infectious endocarditis is a rare complication of invasive cardiac procedures, especially in pediatric patients, there have been several cases where patients have been diagnosed with IE stemming from urinary tract infection. Therefore, specific attention to risk of post-procedure urinary tract infection including systemic involvement should be considered for selected patients in whom urinary catheter placement is anticipated.