Alicia Alvarez
My 7 month old son was recently diagnosed with atypical Kawasaki 's. I had never heard of this disease until my son became very ill and doctor's couldn't quite tell what was wrong. Initially he had been sick for about a week with high fevers of 102 and 103 and vomited. I took him to the doctor where they told me that he had an ear infection so they prescribed antibiotics and a decongestant because he had also been very goopy. I gave him the antibiotic as prescribed but noticed that it just didn't seem to be helping him very much. His fever persisted and I kept giving him Motrin and Tylenol. Finally on the 6th day of fever he woke with a rash all over his body, his diapers were dry, he refused to take anything to eat or drink and he just seemed miserable. I thought that he had developed an allergic reaction of some kind, to either the Motrin or antibiotic so I took him back to the doctor. I described his symptoms and luckily his doctor was able to recognize these symptoms as it possibly being Kawasaki 's, but they said that it was unlikely that he could have it because of his being so young, but still they decided to treat it as such. My baby was admitted that same day. The doctor's were still unsure that it was Kawasaki's but after a battery of tests and everything coming back negative, and after consulting a special team of pediatric cardiologists they decided to go ahead with the IVIG treatment(intravenous immunoglobulin). They told me that if he responded to the treatment then that was most likely the cause of the severity of his symptoms. After receiving the treatment he responded very well to it and almost immediately started feeling better. I thank God that the doctor's were able to tell what these symptoms were early enough so that he didn't get any heart damage. He's now doing better, but is on a high dose aspirin therapy for the next 6 to 8 weeks. I'm still very fearful of him getting a remission of this terrible illness, and have to keep a careful eye on him to not be exposed to the flu or chicken pox as this could lead to Reye's syndrome. Despite all this, I'm just thankful that he is OK and feeling better now and at home. I never imagined that a simple trip to the doctor would turn into a scary week long stay at the hospital.
Kawasaki's is a very serious illness, and I think that parents should be more aware of this terrible childhood disease and what the symptoms are because they can easily be mistaken for something as simple as an allergic reaction or the flu.
Becky Rice
Just a word of encouragement to those of you who are experiencing Kawasaki's. My son, Ike, two and a half years old at the time developed a fever and what we thought was an ear infection at the time, in April of 1989. After almost a week of not quite knowing what was wrong, fortunately, he ended up seeing the on-call pediatrician at our rural Maine small hospital. That doctor had seen 4 cases of Kawasaki's during his residency and put Ike in the hospital. Three days later he was able to diagnose Kawasaki's. Ike was treated with aspirin and gamma globulin, followed up with a pediatric cardiologist and was given a stress test at age 13 which he passed with flying colors. He graduated from high school this spring and is a normal, active 19 year old who is looking forward to enlisting in the Air Force in the next few months. Keep the faith. We need to enlighten as many people as we can about Kawasaki's. I also have an older son who had an episode of autoimmune hepatitis at age 11 and I myself (along with my Dad and brother) have been diagnosed with celiac disease - all autoimmune diseases. I will find someone eventually, who has the time and energy to research this as more than a coincidence.
Amy Lance
I had never heard of this disease until I was reading my son's coroners report. He was just twenty months old when he came down with what appeared to be an allergic reaction to an antibiotic. Some of his symptoms were rash, fever, arthralgia, swollen hands, and loss of appetite. Our doctor did blood tests and ended up misdiagnosing him with Serum Sickness. He returned to normal for about six weeks and then died suddenly from what we found out later to be heart damage that went undetected. There is a wealth of info online about this disease and it is worth looking up. I just want parents to be aware of this disease and to question your doctor extensively if your child ever has symptoms of arthritis. It could be causing damage that you can't see.
Marta Viera
Platelets levels go down with all the treatment but my son's latest lab work show that they went up. I wonder if that means that the disease is coming back or has not left yet? It is very frustrating. He might be getting back on aspirin.
Jennifer Kimzey
I just recently got home from a week long stay in the hospital with my 1 year old daughter who the doctor's diagnosed with Kawasaki's. I know that a lot of the time the different symptoms are sometimes mistaken for something else. I was fortunate enough to have a pediatrician who looked at ALL my daughter's symptoms as a whole and admitted her to the hospital with the chance that she MIGHT have it and they started treatment. Turns out she DID have it, so it was VERY good that they gave her the treatment when they did. She is now out of the hospital and feeling better and I am thankful that there ARE doctors out there who are willing to listen to worried parents and go the extra mile when something serious could be wrong.
Amanda
My daughter, now two, was diagnosed with Kawasaki 's Disease when she was 3 months old. Her only symptom was fever. It was misdiagnosed repeatedly, and consequently the diagnosis came late. Her tiny heart suffered greatly. Her arteries swelled to ten times their size. After two doses of IVIG, she improved. We take aspirin every day, and have echos every six months. Other than that, no one follows her. No one can tell me long term what the effects will be. I fear for her long-term health. Parents and medical staff need to be better informed of this potentially deadly disease.
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