Epidemiologic study of Kawasaki disease in Korea, 1997-1999: comparison with previous studies during 1991-1996.

We performed a retrospective epidemiologic survey on Kawasaki disease (KD) from 1997 to 1999 in Korea. We sent a questionnaire to 111 training hospitals, and summarized the data from 50 hospitals that responded. Data from a total of 3,862 cases were collected, which showed no difference in annual incidence and a seasonal predilection for summer. The male-to-female ratio was 1.51:1, and the mean age was 29.7 months. The prevalence of sibling cases was 0.26%, and the rate of recurrent cases was 2.3%. The proportion of patients with KD among total hospitalized pediatric patients was 1.19% in average, showing a significant difference according to the regions. Coronary arterial (CA) abnormalities were detected by echocardiography in 19.8% of cases (737/3,723) including dilatations in 601 cases (16.1%) and aneurysms in 191 cases (5.1%). Data from total 8,251 cases in the 1990s including the cases in the present study, in Korea showed a mean age of patients 28.9 months, male-to-female ratio 1.6:1, seasonal predilection for summer, prevalence of sibling cases 0.24%, rate of recurrent cases 2.3%, incidence of CA abnormalities 21.0%, and incidence of CA aneurysms 5.2%, with statistically significant decreasing trends in the male-to-female ratio and the rate of CA abnormalities.