Cardiac Arrest as the Initial Presentation of Undiagnosed Kawasaki Disease: A Case Report and Literature Review

Kawasaki Disease (KD) is a self-limited acute vasculitis that mainly affects medium-sized arteries in childhood, with the coronary arteries being one of the main targets. A well-known complication is a coronary aneurysm with myocardial ischemia. We report the case of a 29-year-old female with an insignificant past medical history who presented with sudden cardiac arrest. Labs were significant for elevated troponin, consistent with non-ST elevation myocardial infarction, given diffuse ST depression on the electrocardiogram. The patient underwent a coronary angiogram that revealed diffuse coronary artery disease with multiple ulcerations, aneurysms, and occlusions consistent with KD, despite denying prior history. Cardiac arrest may be the initial presentation of undiagnosed KD and should be considered as one of the differential diagnoses.