title: Application of a prognostic scoring system to critically ill patients in a small military facility.
abstract: Two hundred one consecutive adult admissions to a 3-bed Special Care Unit in a 25-bed military hospital were scored using APACHE II (Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation). Outcome measures included APACHE II scores and mortality predictions; active intensive care interventions; transfers for specialized care; and mortality. Although higher scores generally reflected the need for intensive care intervention, admissions with nondiagnostic chest pain had scores that did not accurately predict their course. This finding could be explained by bias in the original APACHE case mix and by the need for further subclassification of cardiovascular disease. APACHE II scoring can be applied in small intensive care settings. Scoring criteria and logistic regression equations may need to be customized accordingly.
authors.affiliation: 436th Medical Group, Dover Air Force Base, DE 19902, USA.
authors.forename: B J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Messinger-Rapport
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Volk
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Medvedik
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Novak
mesh_terms: D018806:APACHE; D000328:Adult; D015982:Bias; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis; D002637:Chest Pain / Q000175:diagnosis; D003422:Critical Care; D016638:Critical Illness; D003953:Diagnosis-Related Groups; D005260:Female; D005544:Forecasting; D006757:Hospital Units; D006772:Hospitals, Military; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009026:Mortality; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D010343:Patient Admission; D010360:Patient Transfer; D011379:Prognosis