Significance of Coronary Revascularization for Coronary-Artery Obstructive Lesions Due to Kawasaki Disease

As an acquired ischemic heart disease in childhood, coronary-artery disease caused by Kawasaki disease (KD) has been known worldwide since the mid-1970s. KD patients who develop coronary-artery obstructive disease often need revascularization some time in their life. Coronary-artery revascularization for KD coronary lesions can be done with the surgical coronary-artery bypass grafting (CABG) and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) procedures. However, the characteristics of coronary-arterial lesions caused by KD significantly differ from atherosclerotic coronary disease in adults. Therefore, it is much more difficult to determine the optimal time and selection of a coronary-artery revascularization procedure for KD sequelae. CABG using the internal thoracic artery has been accepted as a very useful and beneficial procedure since the mid-1980s, even in small children. Although the use of PCI in the late period can be effective in some adolescent and adult patients, the small vessel size and severe coronary-artery calcification are often limiting factors for its use in children. Therefore, CABG is a better approach for severe leftanterior descending artery and multiple-vessel disease in children and adolescents with KD coronary sequelae. Good coronary revascularization can improve the long-term outcomes of patients with severe KD complications.