[Kawasaki disease: a clinical serie].

Introduction: Kawasaki disease (KD) is a serious disease in children due to its potential complications and sequelae if not promptly and adequately managed.

Objectives: To describe clinical and epidemiological characteristics of children hospitalized due to KD at a tertiary care center and identify risk factors for poor outcome.

Patients And Methods: Retrospective and descriptive study of 32 medical records of patients hospitalized with diagnosis of KD at a tertiary care center of Santiago, Chile between February 1999 and May 2007.

Results: The annual frequency was of 5 cases, mainly boys and during spring. The median age at diagnosis was 1.5 years and 87.5% of the children were younger than 5 years. Typical presentation prevailed in all ages (68,7%). Coronary artery affection, including dilatation or aneurisms, occurred in 21.9% of the cases, with aneurysms in 3 cases. All patients were treated with aspirin and intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG); 4 patients required a second dose. No deaths were reported. The identified risk factors for poor outcome were age older than 5 years and hypoalbuminemia.

Conclusions: KD is an infrequent disease that mainly occurs in children younger than 5 years and with a typical presentation. There are risk factors associated with poor outcome.