[Outcome of prognostic factors of infectious endocarditis over a 16 year period. Apropos of 471 cases].

Four hundred and seventy one cases of infective endocarditis (IE) were reviewed: 338 native valve IE and 133 prosthetic valve IE (42 early and 91 late IE). Two periods were compared: 1973-1980 (250 cases) and 1981-1988 (221 cases). There was a decrease in native valve IE (78% to 64%) and an increase in late prosthetic valve IE (13% to 27%), little change with respect to age, causal cardiac disease, delay in diagnosis (except in native valve IE, 39 to 29 days), or frequency of complications, especially cardiac (50% and 51%).