Kawasaki syndrome hospitalizations among children in Hawaii and Connecticut

Objectives: To estimate the incidence and describe recent trends of Kawasak i syndrome (KS) in 2 different areas of the United States. Methods: Retrospective analysis of Hawaii and Connecticut State KS hospital discharge records for children younger than 5 years. Results: In Hawaii. 175 KS hospitalizations for children younger than 5 yea rs were reported during 1994 through 1997; the annual hospitalization rate per 100 000 children was 47.7. The rate for Hawaiian children younger than 1 year (83.2) was greater than that for 1- to 4-year-old children (39.0), a nd must hospitalizations occurred prior to age 2 years (median age, 17 mont hs). In Connecticut. 171 KS hospitalizations for children younger than 5 ye ars were reported during 1993 through 1996; the annual hospitalization rate per 100 000 children was 18.8, and the median age at hospitalization was 2 8 months. For both states, most hospitalizations were for boys. Although no clear seasonality was apparent, monthly peaks occurred in some of the year s from December through March. Conclusions: Kawasaki syndrome seems to remain an endemic disease in the Un ited States. A high KS annual hospitalization rate was seen in Hawaii, espe cially in children younger than 1 year, whereas in Connecticut, the KS rate was more consistent with those previously reported in the continental Unit ed States.