Paterson et al reported the Standardised Early Warning Score (SEWS) for evaluating hospital inpatients. The authors are from the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh and Imperial College in London.
Patient selection: acute admission to the hospital
Parameters:
(1) respiratory rate in breaths per minute
(2) oxygen saturation in percent
(3) body temperature in °C
(4) systolic blood pressure in mm Hg
(5) heart rate in beats per minute
(6) CNS status (AVPU)
|
Parameter |
Finding |
Points |
|
respiratory rate |
<= 8 |
3 |
|
|
9 to 14 |
0 |
|
|
15 to 20 |
1 |
|
|
21 to 29 |
2 |
|
|
>= 30 |
3 |
|
oxygen saturation |
< 85 percent |
3 |
|
|
85 to 89 percent |
2 |
|
|
90 to 92 percent |
1 |
|
|
>= 93 percent |
0 |
|
temperature |
< 34.0°C |
3 |
|
|
34 to 34.9°C |
2 |
|
|
35 to to 35.9°C |
1 |
|
|
36 to 37.9°C |
0 |
|
|
38 to 38.9°C |
1 |
|
|
>= 39°C |
2 |
|
systolic blood pressure |
<= 69 mm Hg |
3 |
|
|
70 to 79 mm Hg |
2 |
|
|
80 to 99 mm Hg |
1 |
|
|
100 to 199 mm Hg |
0 |
|
|
>= 200 mm Hg |
2 |
|
heart rate |
<= 29 beats per minute |
3 |
|
|
30 to 39 beats per minute |
2 |
|
|
40 to 49 beats per minute |
1 |
|
|
50 to 99 beats per minute |
0 |
|
|
100 to 109 beats per minute |
1 |
|
|
110 to 129 beats per minute |
2 |
|
|
>= 130 |
3 |
|
CNS status |
alert |
0 |
|
|
responds to voice |
1 |
|
|
responds to pain |
2 |
|
|
unresponsive to all stimuli |
3 |
SEWS score =
= SUM(points for all 6 parameters)
Interpretation:
• minimum score: 0
• maximum score: 18
• A score >= 4 was associated with an 8-fold increase in mortality during the hospital stay.
Purpose: To evaluate a hospital patient at the time of admission using the Standardised Early Warning Score (SEWS) of Paterson et al.
Objective: differential diagnosis and mimics, red flags, failure handling, when to refer
ICD-10: ,
