Authors: Sheryl Hui-Xian Ng, Zi Yan Chiam, Gin Tsen Chai, Palvinder Kaur, Wan Fen Yip, Zhi Jun Low, Jermain Chu, Lee Hung Tey, Han Yee Neo, Woan Shin Tan, Allyn Hum

Published in: BMC Pulmonary Medicine 2024, 24: 429. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12890-024-03233-0 

Summary points:

• Prognostic tools have been developed for individual respiratory conditions, but not chronic lung disease, despite patients experiencing common symptoms and requiring similar support.
• The PRO-MEL identifies patients with chronic lung disease who are likely to deteriorate and pass away in the subsequent year, to prioritise them for needs assessment and timely referral to palliative care.
• Classifying patients with a score exceeding 0.3 to be at high risk of death, the PRO-MEL would be able to identify four in ten decedents accurately, which could increase palliative referral rates if embedded in clinical practice for early identification.