{Reference Type}: Case Reports
{Title}: Q fever endocarditis of the tricuspid valve transmitted in an urban setting with no livestock exposure: Case report.
{Author}: Habedank D;Bublak A;Habedank B;
{Journal}: BMC Infect Dis
{Volume}: 24
{Issue}: 1
{Year}: 2024 Aug 1
{Factor}: 3.667
{DOI}: 10.1186/s12879-024-09629-x
{Abstract}: <B>BACKGROUND: </B>Coxiella burnetii is a bacterium with extreme tenacity and contagiousness that is mainly transmitted by inhalation of contaminated aerosols. Nevertheless, a transmission by ticks is under discussion. We report a case of Q fever in an urban environment and far away from sheep breeding that caused a rare right-sided endocarditis.<BR><B>METHODS: </B>A 55-year-old man who was in good health before the event developed a C. burnetii -endocarditis of the tricuspid valve. He had no contact with sheep and no recent travel in a rural or even endemic area. The infection originated in a strictly urban environment, and the patient's occupation as a cemetery gardener in Berlin, coupled with the close temporal and local exposure to wild boar, made a transmission by these animals a plausible hypothesis. The infection was confirmed by the German Reference Laboratory, and the patient recovered completely after treatment with doxycycline and hydrochlorquine.<BR><B>CONCLUSIONS: </B>The specialities of this case report are the right-sided endocarditis and the transmission of C. burnetii in a metropolitan area without sheep contact. We think that this case should serve to increase awareness of the potential for Q fever infection even in non-rural areas.