SAN DIEGO — Health-related quality of life in adolescents and young adults with Kawasaki disease is excellent regardless of coronary sequelae, according to results from a large cross-sectional study of Japanese patients presented at an international Kawasaki disease symposium.
Hiromi Muta, M.D., and his colleagues received 246 completed Medical Outcome Study Short Form 36 surveys from Japanese patients aged at least 16 years who had been diagnosed with Kawasaki disease and had undergone coronary angiography or two-dimensional echocardiography.
The investigators divided respondents into three groups: those with normal coronary measurements on angiography or echocardiography, those who had had aneurysms, and those who had experienced episodes of ischemia. The investigators observed no differences in health-related quality of life among patients in all Kawasaki disease groups compared with the normal Japanese population after adjusting for age and gender, Dr. Muta said at the symposium, sponsored by the American Heart Association.
However, 29% of Kawasaki disease patients reported cigarette use and 12% were overweight (a body mass index of 25 kg/m2 or more), which only accelerates their risk.
“Long-term follow-up is necessary, since the risk of arteriosclerosis increases with age,” he said.