Prednisolone versus cyclosporine as initial treatment for Kawasaki disease

Several studies have demonstrated the efficacy of prednisolone and cyclosporine as initial combination treatments for the prevention of coronary artery abnormalities (CAA) in patients with Kawasaki disease. However, whether prednisolone or cyclosporine results in superior clinical outcomes is unknown. Thus, this study aimed to compare the outcomes of these two treatments.

Using the Japanese Diagnosis Procedure Combination database, we identified patients with Kawasaki disease who had received prednisolone or cyclosporine in addition to initial intravenous immunoglobulin treatment between April 2014 and March 2021. The primary outcome was the proportion of CAA; secondary outcomes included intravenous immunoglobulin resistance, medical costs, and length of hospital stay. Propensity score matching was conducted to compare outcomes between the two groups.

We identified 6288 patients with Kawasaki disease who had received prednisolone (n = 6147) or cyclosporine (n = 141) as an initial treatment in combination with intravenous immunoglobulin. Four-to-one propensity score-matched analysis demonstrated no significant difference in the proportion of CAA (0.7% vs. 2.8%; p = 0.098), intravenous immunoglobulin resistance, or medical costs between the treatment groups. The length of hospital stay was significantly longer in the prednisolone group (14 vs. 11 days, p < 0.001).

Prednisolone and cyclosporine used in the initial combination treatment for Kawasaki disease showed similar clinical outcomes regarding the risk of CAA, intravenous immunoglobulin resistance, and medical costs, whereas the length of hospital stay was longer in the prednisolone group than in the cyclosporine group.