Kawasaki disease causes inflammation in the walls of medium-sized arteries throughout the body. It primarily affects children. The inflammation tends to affect the coronary arteries, which supply blood to the heart muscle.
Kawasaki disease is sometimes called mucocutaneous lymph node syndrome because it also affects lymph nodes, skin, and the mucous membranes inside the mouth, nose and throat.
Signs of Kawasaki disease, such as a high fever and peeling skin, can be frightening. The good news is that Kawasaki disease is usually treatable, and most children recover from Kawasaki disease without serious problems.
Kawasaki disease symptoms usually appear in three phases.
1st phase
Signs and symptoms of the first phase may include:
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A fever that is often is higher than 102.2 F (39 C) and lasts more than three days
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Extremely red eyes (conjunctivitis) without a thick discharge
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A rash on the main part of the body (trunk) and in the genital area
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Red, dry, cracked lips and an extremely red, swollen tongue (strawberry tongue)
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Swollen, red skin on the palms of the hands and the soles of the feet
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Swollen lymph nodes in the neck and perhaps elsewhere
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Irritability
2nd phase
In the second phase of the disease, your child may develop:
3rd phase
In the third phase of the disease, signs and symptoms slowly go away unless complications develop. It may be as long as eight weeks before energy levels seem normal again.
No one knows what causes Kawasaki disease, but scientists don't believe the disease is contagious from person to person. A number of theories link the disease to bacteria, viruses or other environmental factors, but none has been proved. Certain genes may increase your child's susceptibility to Kawasaki disease.
Three things are known to increase your child's risk of developing Kawasaki disease, including:
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Age. Children under 5 years old are most at risk of Kawasaki disease.
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Sex. Boys are slightly more likely than girls are to develop Kawasaki disease.
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Ethnicity. Children of Asian or Pacific Island descent, such as Japanese or Korean, have higher rates of Kawasaki disease.
Kawasaki disease is a leading cause of acquired heart disease in children, but with effective treatment, only a small percentage of children have lasting damage.
Heart complications include:
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Inflammation of blood vessels (vasculitis), usually the coronary arteries, that supply blood to the heart
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Inflammation of the heart muscle (myocarditis)
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Heart valve problems
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