Diagnostic Guidelines for Kawasaki Disease

“Kawasaki disease continues to be an area of evolving understanding in clinical treatment. There are various degrees of severity in this disease and a set of complications and therapies that rheumatologists should be aware of. These guidelines will help clinicians better treat patients by augmenting existing guidelines from the American Heart Association, especially for complex patients seen by rheumatologists.”

“IVIG is the central therapy for patients with Kawasaki disease and should be administered as soon as the diagnosis of Kawasaki disease is made.”

“Kawasaki disease is the leading cause of acquired heart disease in children. This guideline will hopefully take the guesswork out of determining which treatments might work best for newly diagnosed patients, or patients who have been under treatment for a while without success.”