168 articles
International Prognostic Scoring System (myelodysplastic syndromes)
The International Prognostic Scoring System (IPSS) is a 1997 hematology risk score for myelodysplastic syndromes, using marrow blasts, karyotype, and cytopenias to predict survival and AML transformation.
International Prostate Symptom Score
The International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) is an eight-item questionnaire used in urology to grade urinary symptom severity in men and track change over time or treatment.
Khorana score
The Khorana score is a five-variable risk-prediction model estimating the risk of venous thromboembolism in ambulatory cancer patients starting chemotherapy, introduced by Alok Khorana and colleagues in 2008 and endorsed by major guidelines.
Lethal dose
Lethal dose (LD50, median lethal dose): the single dose killing 50 percent of test animals, introduced by J. W. Trevan in 1927; basis of GHS acute toxicity classes and replaced by OECD tests 420, 423, and 425.
List of medical abbreviations
Medical abbreviations: shorthand like b.i.d. (twice a day), BP (blood pressure), and STEMI used in clinical notes and prescriptions; includes Joint Commission Do Not Use list and patient comprehension evidence.
List of medical abbreviations: Latin abbreviations
Latin medical abbreviations such as bid, tid, qid, prn, po, hs, and ac, from phrases like bis in die and pro re nata, used in prescriptions; now discouraged by ISMP and Joint Commission safety lists.
Lysholm knee score
The Lysholm knee score is an eight-item questionnaire rating symptoms and function after knee ligament injury, introduced by Jack Lysholm and Jan Gillquist in 1982.
Malingering
Malingering is the intentional feigning or gross exaggeration of physical or psychological symptoms for external incentives such as money, avoiding work, or evading prosecution; distinguished from factitious disorder by motive, detected via validity tests.
Malnutrition screening
Malnutrition screening is a rapid, indicator-based procedure that identifies patients who are malnourished or at risk, using validated tools such as MUST, MST, and NRS-2002, typically within 24 hours of hospital admission.
Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool
The Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool (MUST) is a five-step screening tool identifying malnourished or at-risk adults, based on BMI, weight loss, and acute illness, published in 2003.
Manchester triage
Manchester triage, formally the Manchester Triage System (MTS), is a five-category, color-coded method for prioritizing emergency department patients, developed in Manchester, UK, in 1994 and used in countries including Germany and Portugal.
McDonald criteria
The McDonald criteria are the international diagnostic criteria for multiple sclerosis, combining clinical attacks with MRI evidence of lesions disseminated in space and time, introduced in 2001.
Medical record
Medical record: the documented history and care of a patient, on paper or as an electronic health record (EHR). Spans ancient Egyptian papyri, Weed's 1968 problem-oriented record, and modern EHRs with measured effects on documentation time, medication errors, and patient portal access.
Medical state
Medical state, more commonly called health status, is the level of health of an individual, group, or population, as assessed by the person concerned or by objective measures.
NAFLD fibrosis score
The NAFLD fibrosis score (NFS) is a formula combining six routine laboratory results and patient characteristics to estimate advanced liver fibrosis in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and guide biopsy decisions.
Naples prognostic score
The Naples prognostic score (NPS) is a prognostic scoring system in oncology that combines albumin, total cholesterol, and two blood-cell ratios to predict survival in cancer patients.
National Early Warning Score
The National Early Warning Score (NEWS2) is a bedside scoring system used in UK hospitals that scores six vital signs from 0 to 20 to detect patient deterioration.
Nephrometry
Nephrometry, or nephrometry score, is a set of urology scoring systems that rate kidney tumor complexity on CT imaging, led by the R.E.N.A.L. and PADUA scores from 2009.
Nonstress test
Nonstress test (NST), a third-trimester antenatal fetal surveillance test recording fetal heart rate for 20+ minutes; reactive if two or more accelerations occur, with ~99.5-99.8% negative predictive value but ~50% false-positive nonreactive rate.
Nottingham Prognostic Index
The Nottingham Prognostic Index is a scoring system for primary operable breast cancer that combines tumor size, lymph node stage, and histologic grade into a single number estimating survival.
Nugent score
The Nugent score is a microscopic method that grades bacteria on a Gram-stained vaginal smear to diagnose bacterial vaginosis, with scores of 7 or higher indicating BV.
Numeric rating scale
The numeric rating scale is a self-report pain measure in which a patient rates pain intensity by choosing a number from 0 to 10, standard in clinical trials since 2005.
Oswestry Disability Index
The Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) is a ten-section patient questionnaire measuring how low back pain limits daily functioning, first published in 1980 and available in over 30 languages.
Oxford knee score
The Oxford knee score is a 12-item patient questionnaire measuring pain and function in knee osteoarthritis, scored 0 to 48, introduced in 1998 and used in the NHS PROMs program.
Pain scale
Pain scale: instruments for measuring pain intensity, chiefly the Numerical Rating Scale (NRS), Verbal Rating Scale (VRS), Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), Wong-Baker FACES, and observational scales like FLACC and PAINAD for nonverbal patients.
Palliative Care Outcome Scale
The Palliative Care Outcome Scale (POS) is a ten-item questionnaire measuring symptoms and concerns in palliative care patients, developed in 1999 and used in over 20 countries.
Patient Health Questionnaire
The Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ) is a free, public-domain family of self-report scales for depression, anxiety, and somatic symptoms; its nine-item PHQ-9 scores 0 to 27.
Patient-reported outcome measure
A patient-reported outcome measure (PROM) is a questionnaire completed by patients to record their symptoms, function, or quality of life, with no interpretation by a clinician.
Patient-Specific Functional Scale
The Patient-Specific Functional Scale (PSFS) is a patient-reported outcome measure, reported by P. Stratford in 1995, in which patients rate their own important activities from 0 to 10 to track rehabilitation progress.
Paul F. Griner
Paul F. Griner (1933–2024) was an American internist and medical educator at the University of Rochester who led Strong Memorial Hospital and served as president of the American College of Physicians.