Kawasaki Syndrome: A Controlled Study of an Outbreak in Wisconsin

Abstract

The etiology of Kawasaki syndrome remains unestablished, although a possible role has been suggested for exposure to the application of carpet shampoo, house dust mites, and rickettsial infection. During an outbreak of 20 cases of Kawasaki syndrome that occurred in southeastern Wisconsin from November 1982 through March 1983, a case-control study was done of 15 cases and 30 matched controls. The study included questionnaire administration, dust collection from homes, and serum specimen collection. Only one patient had been exposed to a shampooed carpet within 30 days before onset of illness. No differences were noted between cases and controls in the degree of exposure to house dust mite-associated factors in the home, nor in the occurrence, density and species-specific prevalence of house dust mites in the home. Meadow voles exposed to house dust mites from the homes of patients did not develop serologic or pathologic evidence of infection due to rickettsiae in the spotted fever and typhus groups or Coxiella burnetii. Anti-mite-specific immunoglobulin E was not detected in serum specimens from cases or controls. Results from this study do not support hypotheses suggesting that the development of Kawasaki syndrome is associated with exposure to application of carpet shampoo, house dust mites, or rickettsial infection.

Searching for the cause of Kawasaki disease — cytoplasmic inclusion bodies provide new insight

“…Genome-wide linkage analysis has revealed linkage of KD with chromosome 12q24, and multiple candidate genes are located in this chromosomal region 33 . Extensive culture and serological studies have not been successful 25,34 , and none of the proposed agents have been confirmed [35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49][50] (TABLe 1). It has been suggested that KD is caused by multiple aetiological agents, because various microorganisms have been isolated from individual patients with KD 51,52 .…”

Kawasaki Syndrome Hospitalizations Among Children in Hawaii and Connecticut

“…Epidemiologic studies suggest that host factors, including age, race, and sex, may play an important role in the occurrence of KS 11 and that KS can occur in outbreaks. 3,[12][13][14][15][16][17][18] In this study, we present an analysis of the epidemiologic characteristics and trends in children younger than 5 years hospitalized for KS in Hawaii and Connecticut. These states represent different populations and locations within the United States.…”

Kawasaki Disease: The Coronary Affection Perspective

“…Rauch et al, [26,27] and Fatica et al [28] demonstrated this association among children affected by epidemics in Wisconsin, Colorado, Montana, and New York. In Patriarca et al, [21] Fatica et al [28] and Rauch et al, [27], the intervals between the exposure to freshly cleaned carpets and the onset of illness were generally clustered around 13-30 days.…”