Conclusions

In summary, this study characterises the contemporary presentation of IE within a UK teaching district general hospital. Documented recent dental procedures were associated with oral-flora IE, while Staphylococcus aureus remained the leading pathogen. The findings may highlight opportunities to improve the documentation of dental history and antibiotic prophylaxis as part of multidisciplinary preventive care. Prospective multicentre studies are required to determine whether these observations are reproducible in larger populations and to establish the actual rate of antibiotic prophylaxis administration.