MELD score (original UNOS)
Model for End-Stage Liver Disease without sodium, as used before 2016 and in many prognostic studies.
Inputs
1 of 4Stable value
Dialysis twice in past week
Patient values are shared with every calculator.
When to use
- Prognosis in cirrhosis or alcohol-associated hepatitis (MELD above 20 suggests severe disease).
Pearls and pitfalls
- Transplant allocation now uses MELD-Na and MELD 3.0.
- Dialysis twice in the past week sets creatinine to 4.
Why use
Widely used in prognostic literature.
MELD = 10 × (0.957 × ln Cr + 0.378 × ln bili + 1.120 × ln INR + 0.643); values below 1 set to 1, Cr capped at 4