Kawasaki Disease

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Medical Author: William C. Shiel Jr., MD, FACP, FACR
Medical Editor: Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD

• What is Kawasaki disease?
• What are the usual symptoms of Kawasaki disease?
• What are the less common findings?
• What is the difference between Kawasaki disease and Kawasaki syndrome?
• What is mucocutaneous lymph node syndrome?
• What causes Kawasaki disease?
• Who develops Kawasaki disease?
• How can Kawasaki disease cause serious complications?
• How is Kawasaki disease treated?
• What is the outlook (prognosis) for children with Kawasaki disease?
• Kawasaki Disease At A Glance

What is Kawasaki disease?

Kawasaki disease is an uncommon illness in children that is characterized by fever of at least five days' duration together with four of the following five findings:

1. inflammation with reddening of the whites of the eyes (conjunctivitis)
   
   
2. redness or swelling of the hands or feet; or generalized skin peeling
   
   
3. rash
   
   
4. lymph node swelling in the neck
   
   
5. cracking inflamed lips or throat; or red "strawberry" tongue

What are the usual symptoms of Kawasaki disease?

The usual symptoms of Kawasaki disease include:

• fever,
  
  
• reddening of the eyes,
  
  
• cracked and inflamed lips and mucous membranes of the mouth,
  
  
• ulcerative gum disease (gingivitis),
  
  
• swollen lymph nodes in the neck (cervical lymphadenopathy), and
  
  
• a rash that is raised and bright red.

The rash appears in a glove-and-sock fashion over the skin of the hands and feet. The rash becomes hard, swollen (edematous), and then peels off.

What are the less common findings?

Most of the common symptoms described above will resolve without complications, even if untreated. Less common findings include inflammation of the lining of the heart (pericarditis), joints (arthritis), or covering of the brain and spinal cord (meningitis), and the other heart complications listed below in the section on serious complications. The outlook for an individual affected is primarily determined by the seriousness of any heart complications.

What is the difference between Kawasaki disease and Kawasaki syndrome?

None. Kawasaki disease is also referred to as Kawasaki syndrome. It was first described in the late 1960s in Japan by the pediatrician Tomisaku Kawasaki.

What is mucocutaneous lymph node syndrome?

Kawasaki disease or syndrome is also called the mucocutaneous lymph node syndrome, a name that is quite descriptive because the disease is characterized by the typical changes in the mucous membranes that line the lips and mouth and by the enlarged and tender lymph nodes.

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