<p class=“mol-para-with-font“>Over the past decade, a silent and deadly bug has been infecting rising numbers of people in the UK.</p><p class=“mol-para-with-font“>New research shows that since 2009, annual cases of infective endocarditis — an infection of the heart which kills more than a third of those affected within a year — have soared by 86 per cent.</p><p class=“mol-para-with-font“>And experts fear official guidance is depriving those most in danger — the million or so Britons with defective or artificial heart valves — of the drugs that could protect them and even save their lives.</p><p class=“mol-para-with-font“>Infective endocarditis occurs when bacteria from bleeding gums, skin infections or even catheters inserted as part of a procedure, get into the bloodstream and 신촌 치과 travel to the heart.</p><div class=“artSplitter mol-img-group“ style=“style“> <div class=“mol-img“> <div class=“image-wrap“> </div> <noscript> </noscript> </div> <p class=“imageCaption“>In roughly a third of infections, the bacteria are thought to get into the bloodstream from the mouth.

This can be as a result of poor dental hygiene [File photo]</p></div><p class=“mol-para-with-font“>The bacteria, the most common of which is Staphylococcus aureus, found on the skin, then slowly attack the heart.</p><p class=“mol-para-with-font“>Early symptoms are flu-like but, left untreated, the damage to the heart can cause heart failure (where it struggles to pump blood around the body) and stroke.</p><p class=“mol-para-with-font“>But what could be causing this relentless year-on-year increase?</p><p class=“mol-para-with-font“>Scientists say Britain’s ageing population is probably a factor: older hearts are less able to withstand destructive bacteria.

Doctors may also be getting better at recognising the condition.</p><p class=“mol-para-with-font“>But there is also a theory that it is a consequence of rules introduced in 2008 by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), 신촌역 치과 the NHS spending watchdog, that barred the routine preventative use of antibiotics for patients most at risk of infective endocarditis when they had a dental appointment.</p><p class=“mol-para-with-font“>In roughly a third of infections, the bacteria are thought to get into the bloodstream from the mouth.

This can be as a result of poor dental hygiene, which can lead to bleeding gums, but may also be due to accidental bleeds during routine dental procedures.</p><div><div data-track-module=“am-related_carousel^related_carousel“ data-track-selector=“.rotator-panels a:not([class*=external])“ data-dm-rotator-rotate=“false“ data-track-pos=“static“ data-preferred-shared-network-enabled=““ data-dm-rotator-auto-init=““ id=“p-20″ class=“related-carousel with-fb-or-tw health half“ data-dm-rotator-active-class=“active“ data-dm-rotator-page-count=“1.0″ data-dm-social-article-auto-init=““ data-dm-rotator-page-size=“1″> <div class=“rotator bdrcc“> <div class=“rotator-title“> <h2>RELATED ARTICLES</h2> <ul class=“rotator-pages link-xocc“> <li class=“rotator-prev“>Previous