"Some risk factors will be already apparent for physicians, but others aren't intuitive," Horne said.
A trauma patient, for example, may look completely healthy apart from his or her injury, but if the risk score uncovers an irregular red blood cell distribution, or the fact they have anemia, it could increase that person's risk of dying.
"It's a standard part of the CBC test, but it's not usually taken into consideration when treating a patient with injuries," Horne said. "Based on the findings of our research, it's something that should be looked at as part of the care plan model."
The idea could lead to new treatment approaches, in addition to giving physicians a better understanding of a patient's condition for more effective long-term care, which is a priority set forth in the Affordable Care Act.
E-mail: wleonard@desnews.com
Twitter: wendyleonards
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Wendy Leonard works as a reporter for the Deseret News, and while her daily duties are dictated by breaking news, she currently focuses on writing about issues involving health care, medicine and transportation. She began more ..
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I thought this, too. Inevitably, more information is good in the right hands and perhaps can be used badly in the wrong hands. And our citizenry chose it.
Completely ridiculous comments. This is just another of MANY prognostic tools used by physicians. When we identify a patient at increased risk of death or other poor outcome, we work even harder to save them. This data is simply a formalization of More..
In one sense this is very neat. In another HIGHLY alarming!
When we consider that America is headed to a full socialized medical system we should open our eyes and see the results. In a fully socialized system costs must be contained. In a More..