User:Mr. Ibrahem/Kawasaki disease
Medical condition / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Kawasaki disease is a syndrome of unknown cause that results in a fever and mainly affects children under 5 years of age.[6] It is a form of vasculitis, where blood vessels become inflamed throughout the body.[1] The fever typically lasts for more than five days and is not affected by usual medications.[1] Other common symptoms include large lymph nodes in the neck, a rash in the genital area, and red eyes, lips, palms, or soles of the feet.[1] Within three weeks of the onset, the skin from the hands and feet may peel, after which recovery typically occurs.[1] In some children, coronary artery aneurysms form in the heart.[1]
Mr. Ibrahem/Kawasaki disease | |
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Other names | Kawasaki syndrome,[1] mucocutaneous lymph node syndrome[2] |
A child showing the characteristic "strawberry tongue" seen in Kawasaki disease[3] | |
Specialty | Pediatrics |
Symptoms | Fever > 5 days, large lymph nodes, rash, sore throat, diarrhea[1] |
Complications | Coronary artery aneurysms[1] |
Usual onset | < 5 years old[1] |
Duration | ~ 3 weeks[1] |
Causes | Unknown[1] |
Diagnostic method | Based on symptoms, ultrasound of the heart[1] |
Differential diagnosis | Scarlet fever, juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, paediatric multisystem inflammatory syndrome[4][1] |
Medication | Aspirin, immunoglobulin[1] |
Prognosis | Mortality 0.2% with treatment[3] |
Frequency | 8–124 per 100,000 people under five[5] |
While the specific cause is unknown, it is thought to result from an excessive immune system response to an infection in children who are genetically predisposed.[6] It does not spread between people.[7] Diagnosis is usually based on a person's symptoms.[1] Other tests such as an ultrasound of the heart and blood tests may support the diagnosis.[1] Other conditions that may present similarly, including scarlet fever and juvenile rheumatoid arthritis.[8] An emerging Kawasaki-like disease associated with COVID-19 is currently under investigation.[9]
Typically, initial treatment of Kawasaki disease consists of high doses of aspirin and immunoglobulin.[1] Usually, with treatment, fever resolves within 24 hours and full recovery occurs.[1] If the coronary arteries are involved, ongoing treatment or surgery may occasionally be required.[1] Without treatment, coronary artery aneurysms occur in up to 25% and about 1% die.[3][10] With treatment, the risk of death is reduced to 0.17%.[10] People who have had coronary artery aneurysms after Kawasaki disease require lifelong cardiological monitoring.[11]
Kawasaki disease is rare.[1] It affects between 8 and 67 per 100,000 people under the age of five except in Japan, where it affects 124 per 100,000.[5] Boys are more commonly affected than girls.[1] The disorder was first described in 1967 by Tomisaku Kawasaki, a Japanese pediatric, in Tokyo.[5][12]