Long-term course of giant coronary aneurysms from Kawasaki disease

January 01, 0001

Long-term course of giant coronary aneurysms from Kawasaki disease

Coronary aneurysms are a feared complication of Kawasaki disease. These Japanese researchers examined the long-term prognosis of Kawasaki disease patients with giant aneurysms. They collected patient demographics, data on interventions, and survival status in 76 patients from a single institution in Japan.

The researchers found: "The average age at onset was 2.9±2.9 years, and the median observational period was 19 years. During this period, 7 patients died and 1 patient underwent a heart transplantation, resulting in 95%, 88%, and 88% survival rates at 10, 20, and 30 years after the onset of KD, respectively. On the other hand, catheter and surgical coronary interventions (median 1 intervention, range 1 to 7 interventions) were performed to alleviate coronary ischemia in 46 patients (61%) at 1 month to 21 years (mode at 1 month) after onset, resulting in 28%, 43%, and 59% cumulative coronary intervention rates at 5, 15, and 25 years after onset, respectively."

The researchers concluded: "The long-term survival of patients with Kawasaki disease complicated by giant coronary aneurysms is moderately good with multiple catheter and surgical interventions. Further research should focus on the prevention of coronary vascular remodeling and on the indications for and effectiveness of percutaneous and surgical coronary interventions."

This study provides important information on the long term clinical course in patients with giant coronary aneurysm due to Kawasaki disease

For the full abstract, click here.

Circulation 123(17):1836-1842, 3 May 2011
© 2011 American Heart Association, Inc.
Long-Term Prognosis of Patients With Kawasaki Disease Complicated by Giant Coronary Aneurysms: A Single-Institution Experience. Kenji Suda, Motofumi Iemura, Hiroshi Nishiono. Correspondence to Kenji Suda: [email protected]

Category: K. Circulatory. Keywords: Kawasaki disease, coronary aneurysm, prognosis, mortality, interventions, case series, journal watch.
Synopsis edited by Dr Paul Schaefer, Toledo, Ohio. Posted on Global Family Doctor 3 June 2011

Pearls are an independent product of the Cochrane primary care group and are meant for educational use and not to guide clinical care.