Is Kawasaki disease serious?

  Kawasaki disease, also known as cutaneous mucosal lymph node syndrome, is a common febrile rash disease in pediatrics and is a systemic vasculitis syndrome mediated by immune mechanisms. Kawasaki disease can be a serious condition in children. Kawasaki disease usually occurs in infants and young children, commonly under 5 years of age, and the main pathological change is inflammation of the blood vessels.  Kawasaki disease has typical clinical manifestations, and the diagnosis of typical Kawasaki disease is not difficult. Once a child is diagnosed, he or she needs to be treated aggressively as soon as possible. After regular treatment, the prognosis for most Kawasaki disease is good. The reason why Kawasaki disease is more serious in children is that Kawasaki disease is dominated by chronic lesions of the coronary arteries, which can include coronary artery dilation, aneurysm, intimal thickening, stenosis, obstruction and scar formation. However, permanent coronary artery lesions can still occur in 1% of children, including giant coronary aneurysms that are often stenotic and require cardiac intervention or surgery.  Therefore, once Kawasaki disease is diagnosed, high doses of aspirin and intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) replacement therapy should be administered as soon as possible, along with other comprehensive treatment modalities, to remove the high risk of coronary artery thrombosis as soon as possible and prevent the child from developing coronary artery disease.