title: Reliability Assessment of an Innovative Wound Score.
abstract: The authors describe an innovative wound score and demonstrate its versatility for scoring a variety of wound types in addition to diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs). To further test its merits, they determined its interobserver reliability in a prospective series of patients. The Wound Score system the authors created integrates the most important features of 4 predominantly used wound scoring systems. It utilizes a logical 0 to 10 format based on 5 assessments each graded from 2 (best) to 0 (worst). The versatility and reliability of the Wound Score were studied in a prospective series of 94 patients with lower extremity wounds. The Wound Score was quick to determine, applicable to a variety of wound types and locations, and highly objective for grading the severity of each of the 5 assessments. The Wound Score categorized wound types as "healthy," "problem," or "futile" for evaluation and management. Diabetes was present in 75.9%, with 70% of the DFUs scoring in the "problem" wound range. Interobserver reli- ability was high (r = 0.81). The objectivity, versatility, and reliability of the Wound Score system facilitates making decisions about the management of wounds, whether DFUs or not, and provides quantification for compara- tive effectiveness research for wound management.
authors.affiliation: Long Beach Memorial Medical Center Hyperbaric Medicine Program, Long Beach, CA and Clinical Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of California, Irvice School of Medicine, Irvine, CA.
authors.forename: Michael B
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Strauss
authors.affiliation: Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Cal State University Long Beach, Long Beach, CA.
authors.forename: Hojin
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Moon
authors.affiliation: Long Beach Memorial Medical Center Hyperbaric Medicine Program, Long Beach, CA.
authors.forename: Jeremy A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Busch
authors.affiliation: Long Beach Memorial Medical Center Hyperbaric Medicine Program, Long Beach, CA.
authors.forename: Christopher K
authors.initials: CK
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.affiliation: Long Beach Memorial Medical Center Hyperbaric Medicine Program, Long Beach, CA.
authors.forename: Lisa
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Nhan
authors.affiliation: Long Beach Memorial Medical Center Hyperbaric Medicine Program, Long Beach, CA.
authors.forename: Stuart
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Miller
authors.affiliation: Memorial Hermann Surgical Hospital, Kingwood, TX.
authors.forename: Phi-Nga Jeannie
authors.initials: PN
authors.lastname: Le
mesh_terms: D017719:Diabetic Foot / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015588:Observer Variation; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D011446:Prospective Studies; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D014945:Wound Healing; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology*