Objective Estimates of the Probability of Death from Burn Injuries

Accurate, objective estimates of the probability of death from burn injuries would, as envisioned by Knaus et al., 1 provide clinicians with an explicit basis for clinical decisions, help them understand the relative contributions of specific prognostic criteria, and reduce reliance on clinical intuition. These estimates would also be useful to patients and to others making medical and financial decisions about their care. The most widely used formulas for the prediction of mortality from burns are based on a minimal set of easily obtained variables. A classic example 2 calculated the percent likelihood of mortality as the patient's age in years plus . . .