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We added a new term to our family's vocabulary this week: atypical Kawasaki disease. And some medical professionals in the Dallas area gained some clinical experience that will help them recognize a very serious illness that might go undiagnosed due to a patient's age.

Kawasaki disease is a rare, non-contagious childhood disease which attacks the vascular system, especially the coronary arteries. It can cause aneurisms, clotting, heart attack, stroke and even death.

Kawasaki disease usually affects children younger than four years old, and is very rarely seen in children older than eight. This is no doubt why the first set of emergency room medical professionals to see our teenage son this past week missed the diagnosis. We are so grateful that our family doctor did recognize our son's symptoms as an aytpical presentation of Kawasaki disease.

There is a critical 10-day-window for treatment of Kawasaki disease to prevent lasting damage. While our son received outstanding clinical care and treatment at Children's Medical Center of Dallas--a pediatric teaching hospital under the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center--it is too early to tell if the treatment was successful in preventing heart damage. We are looking at several months of follow-up echocardiograms and visits with a pediatric cardiologist.

Some of the symptoms of Kawasaki disease include a persistent high fever, a non-itchy rash, swelling of the hands and feet, peeling skin, red eyes, nausea, vomiting and irritability. For more complete information on the disease, please visit this information page maintained by the American Heart Association.

And remember that you must listen to your own instincts as a parent, and insist on a second opinion if you feel that your child's medical issues are not being adequately explained or addressed.