title: Severe Kawasaki disease in a 3-month-old patient: a case report.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Kawasaki disease is a multi-system vasculitis which usually occurs in children under 5 years of age. In infants under three months of age, it is very rare and usually associated with a high incidence of incomplete or atypical forms, often unresponsive to treatment. This condition increases the risk of cardiovascular complications such as coronary artery aneurysms.
  
  
  METHODS
  We describe a 3-month-old infant who developed early and severe aneurysms in three coronary arteries despite a timely administration of intravenous immunoglobulins, followed by three days of intravenous methylprednisolone.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This case report underlines that the development of coronary artery aneurysm correlates with a delayed diagnosis and treatment, incomplete or atypical forms of the disease, and additionally the severity of clinical presentation, especially in cases of very young infants below 3 months of age. Our case is notable because of the very young age of the patient, the severity of clinical presentation with an early development of coronary artery aneurysms and the unresponsiveness to the therapy.
authors.affiliation: Unit of Broncho-Pneumology and Cystic Fibrosis, Department of Medical and Pediatric Science, University of Catania, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania 95123, Italy. leonardi@unict.it.
authors.forename: Salvatore
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Leonardi
authors.forename: Patrizia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Barone
authors.forename: Giacomo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Gravina
authors.forename: Giuseppe Fabio
authors.initials: GF
authors.lastname: Parisi
authors.forename: Valeria
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Di Stefano
authors.forename: Pietro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Sciacca
authors.forename: Mario
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: La Rosa
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D016756:Immunoglobulins, Intravenous / Q000627:therapeutic use; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008775:Methylprednisolone / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use; D009080:Mucocutaneous Lymph Node Syndrome / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy
chemical_list: D016756:Immunoglobulins, Intravenous; D008775:Methylprednisolone