KAWASAKI-DISEASE IN A SUDANESE FAMILY

Kawasaki disease (mucocutaneous lymph node syndrome) is an acute infla mmatory multisystem disease of children. The acute phase of the diseas e is characterized by high grade fever, conjunctivitis, exanthematous skin rash and non-suppurative lymph node enlargement. The subacute pha se follows with the manifestations of arthritis, myocarditis and throm bocytosis. The disease is self-limiting in most children but is associ ated with coronary artery aneurysms in 15-20% of cases. The aetiology is unknown, but results of epidemiological studies suggest that an uni dentified infectious agent might be the causative factor. Since the fi rst description of the disease by the Japanese doctor, Tomisaku Kawasa ki, in 1967 and his report for the English literature in 1974, thousan ds of cases have been reported worldwide. The highest prevalence is fo und in Japan and among the Japanese in Hawaii, followed by the United States. Although the disease was first reported in Africa in 1979, to date only four cases have been reported there. The following account r eviews the literature and describes the manifestations of Kawasaki dis ease as seen in two siblings in Khartoum, Sudan.