MELD score
Gastroenterology and hepatology
Also known as: Model for End-Stage Liver Disease · MELD-Na · MELD 3.0 · MELD-Score · MELD-Na-Score · MELD skoru · MELD-Na skoru · MELD score (Model for End-Stage Liver Disease; MELD-Na, MELD 3.0)
What it is for
Continuous score of the severity of end-stage liver disease, calculated from laboratory values with logarithmic terms; developed to estimate short-term prognosis and used to rank adults on liver transplant waiting lists. Higher values mean more severe disease.
Classification
| Category | Description |
|---|---|
| Original MELD | serum bilirubin, serum creatinine and international normalised ratio (INR). Values below 1.0 are set to 1.0; creatinine is capped at 4.0 mg/dL and set to 4.0 after dialysis at least twice in the past week. In transplant allocation the score is capped at 40. |
| MELD-Na | original MELD plus serum sodium (sodium capped at 137 mmol/L), with an interaction term between MELD and sodium. |
| MELD 3.0 | adds female sex and serum albumin to bilirubin, sodium, INR and creatinine, includes interactions between bilirubin and sodium and between albumin and creatinine, and lowers the creatinine upper bound to 3.0 mg/dL. |
| Reading the score | the value is a continuous ranking of severity, not a set of classes; versions give different numbers for the same patient, so the version used should be stated. |
Source
MELD 3.0: The Model for End-Stage Liver Disease Updated for the Modern Era
Gastroenterology 2021;161:1887–1895.e4 (Kim WR et al.)
DOI: 10.1053/j.gastro.2021.08.050
PMID: 34481845
- Edition
- MELD 3.0 (Kim 2021); MELD-Na (Kim 2008); original MELD (Kamath 2001)
- Checked on
Summary of the published classification in our own words. Not a substitute for the original publication.
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