What is the Difference Between Scarlet Fever and Kawasaki Disease?

Scarlet fever and Kawasaki disease are both diseases that affect children, but they have distinct differences in their causes, symptoms, and treatments.

Causes:

Scarlet fever is an infectious disease caused by an infectious agent producing erythrogenic toxins in a person who does not have immunity to the toxin.
Kawasaki disease is an inflammatory disease with an unknown cause, but it may be linked to a genetic predisposition or an environmental agent.

Symptoms:

Both diseases cause elevations in body temperature, adenopathy, strawberry tongue, rash, and desquamation.
In scarlet fever, the desquamation tends to be diffuse and flaking.
In Kawasaki disease, the desquamation tends to be sheetlike and affects the hands, beginning in the periungual region.
Kawasaki disease has a distinctively high and persistent fever, bloodshot eyes, "strawberry" tongue, cracked dry lips, and redness of the fingers and toes.

Diagnosis:

Scarlet fever is diagnosed based on the presence of a distinctive pink-red rash, among other symptoms.
Kawasaki disease is diagnosed based on a combination of symptoms, including a high temperature for 5 days or longer and at least one other key symptom.

Treatment:

Scarlet fever is treated with antibiotics.
Kawasaki disease is treated with immunoglobulin and aspirin, with the goal of reducing inflammation and preventing complications.

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What is the Difference Between Scarlet Fever and Kawasaki Disease?

Comparative Table: Scarlet Fever vs Kawasaki Disease

Scarlet fever and Kawasaki disease share some similarities in their symptoms, such as fever, rash, and mucous membrane changes. However, they have distinct differences in their causes, clinical manifestations, and treatment. Here is a table summarizing the differences between the two diseases:

Feature	Scarlet Fever	Kawasaki Disease
Cause	Infectious agent, Streptococcus pyogenes	Unknown, likely an immune system response to an infectious agent or other trigger
Onset	Rapid onset with fever, followed by a characteristic rash, sore throat, and other symptoms	Fever lasting at least 5 days, unremitting even with antipyretics, then followed by other symptoms
Desquamation	Diffuse and flaking	Sheet-like
Rash	Fine, sandpapery, red, and white mottled appearance	Polyangular or polymorphous configuration, raised, irregular, and confluent
Strawberry Tongue	Presence	Presence
Cardiac Involvement	Rheumatic heart disease, inflammation of heart muscle or valves	Acute myocarditis, coronary artery aneurysms, heart failure
Treatment	Antibiotics and other symptomatic treatments	Underlying immune dysregulation disrupted, immune globulin and aspirin

Scarlet fever is an infectious disease caused by Streptococcus pyogenes, leading to the production of erythrogenic toxins. Kawasaki disease, on the other hand, is an inflammatory disease with an unknown cause, possibly an immune system response to an infectious agent or other trigger. The diagnostic criteria and treatment approaches for these two conditions are different, and it is essential to differentiate between them for accurate management.

Guilherme Mazui

Guilherme Mazui is graduated in journalism from the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG) and a master's degree in Communication from the University of São Paulo (USP). In addition, he has experience in advertising writing and has worked as a content editor in several companies.