Kawasaki disease (KD) is a rare and often undiagnosed disease, at least in the western Countries It is characterized by an inflammatory acute febrile vasculitis of medium sized arteries with a propensity to damage the coronary arteries It normally occurs in the early childhood and the diagnosis is based on clinical symptoms During the progression of the disease thrombocytosis is usually detected This can exert a pathogenetic role in the cardiovascular complications occurring in KID In the present work peripheral blood plasma and platelets from twelve naive patients with KD were analyzed in order to detect possible pathogenetic determinants or progression markers Morphological, biochemical and flow cytometrical methods have been used. With respect to age-matched healthy donors, we found an increase of platelet activation markers, i.e degranulation, phosphatidylserine (PS) externalization and leukocyte-red cell-platelet aggregates Some significant alterations that Could represent Suitable diagnostic determinants have also been detected in patient plasma: (i) decreased antioxidant power, (ii) decreased levels of asymmetric dymethylarginine (ADMA), a naturally occurring chemical interfering with the production of nitric oxide, and (m) increased levels of soluble P-Selectin and soluble annexin V Since PS externalizing platelets are known to exert a pro-coagulant activity, Our data suggest the hypothesis that increased risk of vascular complications in KD could depend on platelet stimulation and defective apoptosis probably related to nitrosative stress (C) 2010 Elsevier Inc All rights reserved