Kawasaki disease complicated by peripheral gangrene

Kawasaki disease complicated by peripheral artery thrombosis: a case report and literature review

BACKGROUND

Peripheral gangrene is rarely documented as a possible complication of Kawasaki disease (KD). There are many causes of peripheral gangrene, and the common cause is in situ thrombosis or embolism. Most cases are reported to have regrettable outcomes (amputation or necrotic shedding). Herein, we report the successful management of KD complicated by peripheral artery thrombosis in an older Chinese boy, and a review of all cases of peripheral gangrene in KD in the literature.

CASE PRESENTATION

We found that most of the children with this complication were under 1 year old, had a heavy inflammatory response combined with the use of cortisol and immunoglobulin, and most children had coronary artery lesions. In addition, Peripheral gangrene mainly occurred in the subacute or chronic stage, and the prognosis is poor.

CONCLUSIONS

In the presence of high risk factors, we consider it is necessary to monitor coagulation function and administer prophylactic anticoagulation therapy. When peripheral artery thrombosis or embolism occur, heparin and prostaglandins can be used for treatment.

Peripheral Gangerene, an Unusual Presentation of Infantile Kawasaki: A Case Report and Literature Review

INTRODUCTION

Diagnosing infantile Kawasaki disease with atypical symptoms is difficult, and it also has higher risk of coronary abnormalities which is one of the most common complications of KD. Other complications such as pericardial effusion, mitral insufficiency, congestive heart failure, myocardial systolic dysfunction, and systemic vasculitis were also reported. Peripheral gangrene and necrosis are among the rare complications of this systemic vasculitis. Case Presentation. We report an 8-month-old girl with prolonged fever, generalized petechial rash, cracked erythematous lips, edema, and coronary ectasia who received two doses of IVIG in another center, but short after her discharge, she started to develop a necrotic plaque on her knee. She was admitted in our hospital, and the repeat echocardiography showed sustained coronary ectasia. She received 3 doses of methylprednisolone pulse therapy and was discharged with aspirin and prednisolone. In the follow-up visits, the coronary ectasia was resolved and the necrotic ulcer was healing with a scar.

CONCLUSIONS

The diagnosis of Kawasaki disease and echocardiographic evaluation of the coronary arteries should be considered in young infants with prolonged fever of unknown origin. Peripheral gangrene is a rare but important complication of infantile Kawasaki disease, although the exact mechanism in not fully understood.

Pediatric vasculitis: recognizing multisystemic manifestations at body imaging

Pediatric vasculitides are multisystem diseases that can be diagnostic challenges because of variable clinical manifestations. The clinical manifestation is determined by the size of the affected vessels, organs involved, extent of vascular injury, and underlying pathologic characteristics. Henoch-Schönlein purpura and Kawasaki disease are the two most common subtypes of pediatric vasculitis. Diagnosis of pediatric vasculitis can be difficult, and the outcome can be serious or fatal in the absence of timely intervention. Imaging plays a central role in establishing the diagnosis of vasculitis involving large- and medium-sized vessels, visualizing its vascular and extravascular manifestations, and monitoring the disease course and response to treatment. Although imaging cannot depict the vessel changes of small-vessel vasculitis directly, it can be used to detect tissue damage resulting from vessel inflammation. This article discusses the classification and clinical features of the major pediatric vasculitides. The imaging approach to and nonneurologic findings of major pediatric vasculitis subtypes are reviewed for the pediatric body imager.

Kawasaki Disease and Peripheral Gangrene in Infancy

Introduction:

Early diagnosis and treatment of Kawasaki disease as the most common cause of acquired heart disease in childhood, may significantly improve the prognosis. Diagnosing infantile Kawasaki (younger than a year) is difficult because of obscure symptoms; at the same time they are at the higher risk of coronary abnormalities.

Case Presentation:

We report three infants with prolonged (more than 5 days) fever and peripheral gangrene without any other clinical manifestations of Kawasaki disease. Kawasaki was diagnosed due to dilation of coronary artery and other aortic branches, thrombocytosis, and rising of ESR and CRP. All patients were treated with high dose aspirin, IVIG and pulse therapy with methylprednisolone. Additionally, cytotoxic drugs or infliximab were used for two of them because of severe aneurysms in the aortic branches. All 3 patients received aspirin with anti-platelet aggregation dose and 2 patients heparin as an anti-coagulant agent for longtime. After adequate treatment, peripheral gangrene, arterial dilations and aneurysms improved, but during 12 months follow-up coronary aneurysms did not improve completely.

Conclusions:

Peripheral gangrene must be regarded as an important sign of infantile Kawasaki disease early treatment of which can prevent severe permanent coronary involvements and sequels.

A case of refractory Kawasaki disease complicated by peripheral ischemia

Kawasaki disease (KD), an acute systemic vasculitis that primarily affects infants and young children, is occasionally refractory to initial high-dose intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG). Some patients with KD develop peripheral gangrene as a fatal complication, though this is rare. There has been no case reported in the literature of complicated peripheral gangrene that completely resolved without sequelae. Recently, we encountered a patient with KD which was refractory to IVIG, later developing peripheral gangrene. For the treatment of a peripheral gangrene dexamethasone, methotrexate, and an anticoagulant were administered, resulting in resolution of the gangrenous lesions without sequelae. Early diagnosis and treatment can reduce permanent sequelae and mortality from refractory KD complicated by peripheral ischemia.

Incomplete and atypical Kawasaki disease in a young infant: severe, recalcitrant disease responsive to infliximab

This report describes a 7-week-old infant with incomplete and atypical Kawasaki disease, an acute vasculitis that predominantly affects infants and children. The patient was refractory to 2 doses of intravenous immunoglobulin and to high-dose intravenous methylprednisolone. He became afebrile only after 2 doses of infliximab. His prolonged, recalcitrant course was complicated by the development of peripheral gangrene and giant coronary artery aneurysms. Infants with incomplete and atypical Kawasaki disease are prone to intravenous immunoglobulin treatment failure and are at risk for the development of coronary artery aneurysms. In such patients, we suggest that consideration be given to early aggressive therapy with corticosteroids or infliximab added to intravenous immunoglobulin.

Peripheral Gangrene Associated with Kawasaki Disease and Successful Management Using Prostacycline Analogue: A Case Report

We report a case of child-onset Kawasaki disease that presented as a prolonged fever and manifested with coronary aneurysms and peripheral gangrene of the lower limbs. Therapy with intravenous immunoglobulins, corticosteroids, aspirin, anticoagulants, and ilomedine, a prostacyclin analogue, resulted in rapid improvement in the patient's condition without extremity loss. Those treating patients with Kawasaki disease must be aware of possible vascular ischemia in the disease process that is reversible by early intervention treatments, including the use of a prostacycline analogue, that improve quality of life.

Infantile Kawasaki disease and peripheral gangrene

We report a 1-month-old infant with Kawasaki disease and peripheral gangrene. We advocate using the newly published American Heart Association guidelines advising early laboratory and echocardiogram investigations in infants with fever but without other classic manifestations of Kawasaki disease. Initiation of early therapy may prevent this serious complication with its permanent sequelae.

Peripheral gangrene in adult-onset Kawasaki disease

Kawasaki disease (KD) is an acute vasculitis characterized by marked tropism of the coronary vessels. Usually a childhood disease, KD can occasionally be observed in adults. We report a case of adult-onset KD that presented as a prolonged fever of unknown origin with subsequent development of severe vasculitis, manifested by coronary aneurysms and peripheral gangrene of the lower limbs. Therapy with intravenous immunoglobulins, corticosteroids, aspirin, anticoagulants, and prostacyclin analogue resulted in rapid improvement in the patient's condition but he required partial distal amputation for irreversible gangrene. Peripheral ischaemia leading to gangrene is a very rare feature of KD vasculitis with only 19 cases previously published in the Medline-indexed literature. The outcomes of those patients were poor, being either fatal or requiring distal amputation. All prior cases affected young children less than 1 year old and, to the best of our knowledge, the present case is the first description of peripheral gangrene in adult-onset KD.

Multiple intestinal stenoses and peripheral gangrene: a combination of two rare surgical complications in a child with Kawasaki disease

Kawasaki disease (KD) often presents with a challenging variety of clinical symptoms. Severe gastrointestinal complications are rare and mainly appear as pseudo-obstruction. However, the authors report the unique case of a 4-month-old girl with KD suffering from a mechanical ileus. The optimal timing of surgery presented a dilemma, because she received lytic treatment for gangrenes of both her hands and feet and additionally had large coronary artery aneurysms. Finally laparotomy had to be performed while the patient was on an anticoagulant medication, and it showed a 30-cm-long jejunal segment with multiple filiforme stenoses, requiring resection and anastomosis. The postoperative course was uneventful regarding the abdominal situation; however, the left hand and left foot remained gangrenous and had to be amputated. In patients with KD, not only pseudo-obstruction, but irreversible intestinal obliteration has to be encountered. This combination of intestinal stenosis and acral gangrene has not been described before. J Pediatr Surg 36:651-653.