Kawasaki disease: Devon mum raising awareness of baby loss

A Devon mother is raising awareness of a rare disease after losing her son when he was a baby.

Kathryn Rowlands is asking businesses in her home town to light up their buildings red to highlight the dangers of Kawasaki disease.

Her son Alex died when he was eight months old.

Ms Rowlands, from Tavistock, said if her story made "other parents be vigilant, it was worth retelling".

Kawasaki disease is a condition that causes blood vessels to become inflamed and is the leading cause of acquired heart disease in UK children.

It affects about eight in every 100,000 children.

Describing what happened to Alex, Ms Rowlands said: "His first symptom was that he had a slight temperature to start with and then that became a very raised temperature.

"I noticed that there was a swelling in the gland on the side of his neck.

"On day five, we were admitted to hospital, his temperature hadn't come down. He now had a rash over his body. He wasn't wanting to feed.

"We were diagnosed pretty much straight away in hospital, but the inflammation in his body was too much and he developed coronary aneurysms."

Ms Rowland turned to furniture painting to help process her grief and has set up a business in Alex's memory.

Sales from Alex's Oak Tree in Tavistock supports Societi, the UK's Kawasaki disease charity.

As part of her awareness campaign Kathryn is asking other businesses in Tavistock to light up prominent buildings red on Friday.

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