A Rare Case Of Hypodontia In Kawasaki Disease: Review Of The Literature And Case Report

Abstract

Kawasaki disease (KD) is a rare idiopathic infantile multi-organ vasculitis of medium-sized arteries that predominantly affects children younger than the age of 5 years. Besides the persistent fever of 5 or more days and among the typical criteria for the diagnosis of KD, a dentist may encounter oral manifestations such as “strawberry tongue”, red or dry fissured lip and oropharyngeal erythema. If left untreated, the disease may have fatal prognosis due to the involvement of vital organs. Hypodontia belongs to the most common congenital anomalies in humans. Genetic studies suggest both genetic and environmental etiology toward this anomaly. It is frequently associated with other oral anomalies and altered craniofacial growth. Different health problems have been observed in patients with hypodontia. In the literature, the finding of hypodontia in KD is very rare. This article aims to report a case of a Caucasian 8 year-old boy with hypodontia, who was treated in the age of 7 months for KD. A short review of the literature regarding the two conditions is presented.