Kawasaki disease is a very rare disease that is typically found in children from five years of age and under. Kawasaki disease causes inflammation in the walls of arteries throughout the body(Kawasaki Disease). It is also known as Mucocutaneous lymph node syndrome, because it commonly affects a person’s lymph nodes, skin, and the mucous membranes. With this disease being so rare there is only about 4,200 cases a year in the United States(Kawasaki Disease Foundation). Although it is very rare, it is the leading cause of acquired heart disease in children and infants. The cause of Kawasaki disease is still unknown, but doctors and scientists think that it may be linked to bacteria, or other viruses, yet it has not be proved. …show more content…
Some doctors can catch the disease during the first phase, so children with Kawasaki’s disease typically don’t go through phases two and three. However, it is very hard to diagnose because there is no specific test to prove that you have Kawasaki’s disease. The first phase includes: fevers lasting five days or longer, bloodshot eyes, full body rashes, swollen, red, cracked lips and tongue, also known as strawberry tongue, swollen, red feet and hands, and swollen lymph nodes(Kawasaki Disease). In the second phase, children’s skin will begin to peel, they will have severe joint pain and abdominal pain, along with vomiting and diarrhea. Finally, if doctors haven’t diagnosed children with Kawasaki’s disease after the second phase, they will move to the third and last stage, where the sign and symptoms seem to go away, yet children’s energy levels will begin to lower at a quick rate. Social structure factors that affect Kawasaki’s disease include age, gender, and ethnicity. Kawasaki’s disease is most common in children and infants under five years old, although older children and teenagers can get it but their probability is only 20 percent. It is also more common in boys than it is in girls, but doctors don’t have a reason for why that it is. As for ethnicity, it is more commonly found in Asian and Pacific Islander children(Kawasaki Disease Causes). However, even though it is more prevalent in Asian children, any race or ethnicity child could end up getting Kawasaki’s