Kawasaki disease associated with parainfluenza type 3 virus infection.

Kawasaki disease (KD) is an acute, febrile and multisystem vasculitis of early childhood with a striking predilection for the coronary arteries. In developed countries, the incidence of KD has replaced acute rheumatic fever as the leading cause of acquired heart disease in children. The etiologic agent of KD remains unknown, although clinical and epidemiologic features strongly indicate an infectious cause. Parainfluenza viruses are the major cause of laryngotracheobronchitis (croup), but they also commonly cause upper respiratory tract infection, pneumonia, or bronchiolitis. Types 1 and 2 viruses are the most common pathogens associated with croup, and type 3 viruses are associated with bronchiolitis and pneumonia in infants and young children. Rarely, mumps, aseptic meningitis, and encephalitis have been associated with type 3 infections. We report a patient with typical KD during parainfluenza type 3 infection.