Macrophage Activation Syndrome: A Potentially Fatal Complication of Kawasaki Disease

Kawasaki disease is an acute vasculitis of childhood. Macrophage activation syndrome is a rare life threatening complication. In this article, we report a five-year-six-month old girl patient with Kawasaki disease who developed irritability, hepatosplenomegaly, and pancytopenia after treatment with intravenous immunoglobulins. Patient's blood test and bone marrow aspiration results suggested macrophage activation syndrome. The patient responded to dexamethasone in a dose of 10 mg/[m.sup.2]/day. Keywords: Immunoglobulin; Kawasaki disease; macrophage activation syndrome.