Association between Kawasaki Disease and Autism: A Population-Based Study in Taiwan

Ho-Chang Kuo, Chung-Min Wu, Wei-Pin Chang, Chun-Nan Kuo, Deniz Yeter, Chun-Yi Lin, Jei-Tsung Pai, Ying-Chen Chi, Chia-Hsien Lin, Liang-Jen Wang and Wei-Chiao Chang
Additional contact information
Ho-Chang Kuo: Department of Pediatrics, Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital and Chang Gung University College of Medicine, Kaohsiung 833, Taiwan
Chung-Min Wu: Department of Business Management, National Taipei University of Technology, Taipei 106, Taiwan
Wei-Pin Chang: Department of Healthcare Management, Yuanpei University, HsinChu 300, Taiwan
Chun-Nan Kuo: Department of Clinical Pharmacy, School of Pharmacy, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan
Deniz Yeter: Shawnee, Kansas, 66226, USA
Chun-Yi Lin: Department of Healthcare Management, Yuanpei University, HsinChu 300, Taiwan
Jei-Tsung Pai: Department of Healthcare Management, Yuanpei University, HsinChu 300, Taiwan
Ying-Chen Chi: Department of Education & Research, Taipei City Hospital, Taipei 106, Taiwan
Chia-Hsien Lin: Department of Health Industry Management, School of Health Care Management, Kainan University, Taoyuan 338, Taiwan
Liang-Jen Wang: Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital and Chang Gung University College of Medicine, Kaohsiung 833, Taiwan
Wei-Chiao Chang: Department of Clinical Pharmacy, School of Pharmacy, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 110, Taiwan

IJERPH, 2014, vol. 11, issue 4, 1-12

Abstract: Objective : The association between Kawasaki disease and autism has rarely been studied in Asian populations. By using a nationwide Taiwanese population-based claims database, we tested the hypothesis that Kawasaki disease may increase the risk of autism in Taiwan. Materials and Methods : Our study cohort consisted of patients who had received the diagnosis of Kawasaki disease (ICD-9-CM: 446.1) between 1997 and 2005 ( N = 563). For a comparison cohort, five age- and gender-matched control patients for every patient in the study cohort were selected using random sampling ( N = 2,815). All subjects were tracked for 5 years from the date of cohort entry to identify whether they had developed autism (ICD-9-CM code 299.0) or not. Cox proportional hazard regressions were then performed to evaluate 5-year autism-free survival rates. Results : The main finding of this study was that patients with Kawasaki disease seem to not be at increased risk of developing autism. Of the total patients, four patients developed autism during the 5-year follow-up period, among whom two were Kawasaki disease patients and two were in the comparison cohort. Further, the adjusted hazard ratios (AHR) (AHR: 4.81; 95% confidence interval: 0.68–34.35; P = 0.117) did not show any statistical significance between the Kawasaki disease group and the control group during the 5-year follow-up. Conclusion : Our study indicated that patients with Kawasaki disease are not at increased risk of autism.

Keywords: Kawasaki disease; autism; population-based study; Taiwan population (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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