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 associates mailed a Medical Outcome Study Short Form 36 to 624 Japanese patients aged at least 16 years who had received a diagnosis of Kawasaki disease between 1973 and 1998 and were evaluated by coronary angiography or two-dimensional echocardiography at one of the study sites.
Of the 624 forms sent, 246 were completed and returned, said Dr. Muta of Kurume (Japan) University. Respondents ranged in age from 16 to 34 years. 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 smoking and 12% were overweight, with a body mass index of 25 kg/m