Kawasaki disease in adults. An otolaryngologist's perspective

Kawasaki disease has been recognized for more than 15 years in children, but it is only recently that adult cases have been known to occur. One such case is reported herein. The cases of previously described adult patients are reviewed in depth, emphasizing the otolaryngologic findings. Diagnosis is based on clinical findings with prominent fever, oropharyngeal erythema, dermatitis, and cervical lymphadenopathy. The underlying lesion is a vasculitis and treatment is mainly supportive, although aspirin seems to have some value in the prevention of cardiac complications.