Kawasaki Syndrome
Kawasaki syndrome is a rare disease that typically affects children under 5 years. It is also known as mucocutaneous lymph node syndrome. Kawasaki syndrome is a mysterious disease of unknown cause, although some scientists suspect the cause might be a type of bacteria (like staphylococcus or streptococcus).
Kawasaki syndrome was first identified in 1967 in Japanese children, and in the course of nine years in America were reported cases of the disease in children living in Hawaii. Although researchers believe the Kawasaki syndrome could have been caused by an infection carried between Japan and Hawaii, there is no confirmation that Kawasaki syndrome is transmitted by contact between people. Recent evidence suggests that genetic factors may also be important, however, the cause of Kawasaki syndrome remains a mystery.
Kawasaki syndrome sick children and that triggers an inflammation (swelling) in different parts of the body. In the heart, this inflammation may be a myocarditis (inflammation of heart muscle), pericarditis (inflammation of the membranes covering the heart) or valvulitis (inflammation of the heart valves).
Kawasaki syndrome can cause a type of meningitis (inflammation of the membranes covering the brain and spinal cord) and can cause inflammation in the skin, eyes, lungs, lymph nodes, joints, and mouth. However, the most dangerous problem associated with Kawasaki syndrome is the threat of vasculitis (inflammation), especially in medium-sized arteries.
This vasculitis can be especially dangerous when it damages the heart’s coronary arteries, which causes abnormal enlargement (dilation) or bulge (aneurysm) in these vessels. In rare cases, arterial damage associated with Kawasaki syndrome can significantly interfere with the blood supply to the heart, to the point of causing a heart attack in a young child.
In the U.S. and other industrialized countries, Kawasaki syndrome is currently the most common cause of heart disease is not present at birth in children. According to U.S. government statistics, approximately 4,200 people with Kawasaki syndrome were hospitalized in 2000. Seventy-five to 80% of those were children under 5 years of age. It often affects boys more than girls.