Kawasaki disease

Kawasaki disease is a syndrome of unknown cause that results in a fever and mainly affects children under 5 years of age. It is a form of vasculitis, where blood vessels become inflamed throughout the body.

The fever typically lasts for more than five days. While the cause is unknown, it may be due to an infection triggering an autoimmune response.

Boys are more commonly affected than girls.  The disorder was first described in 1967 by Tomisaku Kawasaki in Japan.

References

Other websites
 Kawasaki disease - Stanford Children's Health
 Kawasaki disease research program
 Kawasaki disease foundation 
 Kawasaki disease information from Seattle Children's Hospital Heart Center

Category:Autoimmune diseases