A mother has spoken to Metro.co.uk over fears that her daughter may have been struck by Kawasaki disease, which experts believe may be linked to coronavirus.

The mum from Lancashire, who does not wish to be named, said her two-year-old daughter first appeared to have a cold, but within three days a rash appeared on her feet that quickly spread across her body, turning purple, and she has undergone several tests. Two weeks later they are still waiting for answers.

The mum initially raised concerns with a 111 operator who said that it could be a symptom of coronavirus, but the daughter was not displaying the classic signs of Covid-19 – shortness of breath, persistent cough and high temperature.

The mother explained: ‘She started with a cold, on the third day started with a rash just on her feet. That then spread just to her legs, forearms and hands. Her feet have gone purple and now her legs are. No temperature, no cough, nothing.

‘We didn’t think a rash was a symptom but was told Covid is viral so can have any reaction.’

But despite initially being treated as a suspected coronavirus case, the mum was passed from pillar to post. Her daughter was taken to hospital several times and still the family has no real answers.

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Initially they were told it could be hand, foot and mouth, then a viral infection, and even slapped cheek syndrome.

However, following an alert to doctors that was issued over the weekend, the little girl has been tested again and her family is once morewaiting for results.

After reaching out to other parents, the mum said that she has heard anecdotal evidence from around the world of parents experiencing similar symptoms in their young children, particularly in Spain.

The mum added that Spanish authorities appeared to be more aware of rashes being a symptom of coronavirus, particularly among young children, and parents had been briefed, adding that the UK was ’10 steps behind’ other places. But apart from the initial 111 telephone call, she felt she had been dismissed.

Her daughter’s rash has now started to fade substantially, but her legs and arms are mottled with skin flaking away from her feet, although thankfully she now appears to be over the worst.

The little girl is in good spirits, but her mum still wants answers and wants other parents to be aware of the symptoms so that children can get treatment quickly to avoid heart complications and further tragedies.

Doctors in the UK and Italy are now investigating a possible link between coronavirus and clusters of severe inflammatory disease among children with high fevers and swollen arteries.

Northern Italy has reported large numbers of children with what appears to be Kawasaki disease, an illness that is more common in parts of Asia.

The UK’s health secretary, Matt Hancock, has said that he was ‘very worried’ about the observations and the NHS is looking at the issue closely.

Kawasaki disease, whose cause is unknown, often afflicts children aged under five and is associated with:

• a rash
• swollen glands in the neck
• dry, cracked lips
• red fingers or toes
• red eyes

In severe cases it can cause inflammation of arteries of the heart. There is some evidence that individuals can inherit a predisposition to the disease, but the pattern is not clear.

England’s national medical director, Stephen Powis, told the British briefing he had become aware of reports of severely ill children with Kawasaki-like symptoms in the past few days but stressed it was too early to determine a link with the coronavirus.

‘I’ve asked the national clinical director for children and young people to look into this as a matter of urgency. … We’re not sure at the moment,’ Powis said.

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