What criteria are used to diagnose infective endocarditis (IE)?
Clinical, echocardiographic, and microbiological criteria (Tables 2 and 3) are used routinely to support a diagnosis of IE, and they do not rely on histopathological confirmation of resected valvular material or arterial embolus. If suggestive features are absent, then a negative echocardiogram should prompt a more thorough search for alternative sources of fever and sepsis.