Hepatology Equation Moderate evidence Clinical review pending v1.0.0

Maddrey's Discriminant Function

Is alcohol-associated hepatitis severe enough to consider corticosteroids?

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About this tool

Prognostic index from prothrombin time and bilirubin in alcohol-associated hepatitis.

Intended use

Patients with clinically diagnosed alcohol-associated hepatitis.

Outcome

Short-term mortality

Time horizon

~30 days

Derivation population

Patients with alcoholic hepatitis in a corticosteroid trial.

Limitations

PT varies by reagent.
MELD and Lille models are commonly used alongside.

Clinical problems

Liver disease

Evidence

Evidence level

Moderate evidence

Externally validated, or an established physiological equation whose clinical thresholds rest on consensus; guideline support limited or mixed. Methodology

Evidence summaries for this tool are awaiting independent clinical review. Statistics are shown only where they could be attributed to a specific publication.

References

Original publicationMaddrey WC, Boitnott JK, Bedine MS, et al. Corticosteroid therapy of alcoholic hepatitis. Gastroenterology 1978;75:193-199. Find on PubMed (opens in a new tab)

Version history

Version	Formula	Effective	Reviewer	Changes
v1.0.0	Maddrey 1978 (modified, 4.6 coefficient)	2026-10-03	—	Initial implementation with reference test vectors.

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Clinical decision support only. Interpret results in the context of the individual patient and current guidance; HumanPulse does not replace professional medical judgment.