ToolsCalculators
Marburg Heart Score (MHS)
Rules out coronary artery disease in primary-care patients with chest pain.
Marburg Heart Score (MHS)
Age/sex: women >=65 years or men >=55 years
Known clinical vascular disease (coronary, cerebrovascular, or peripheral artery disease)
Pain is worse during exercise
Pain is not reproducible by palpation
Patient assumes the pain is of cardiac origin
Result0 points
Score <3: coronary artery disease is unlikely.
- Marburg Heart Score
- 0
When to use
- Adults presenting to primary care with chest pain, to help decide who needs further cardiac work-up.
Formula
One point each for: age/sex threshold, known vascular disease, exertional pain, pain not reproducible by palpation, patient believes pain is cardiac. Range 0-5; score >=3 suggests CAD should not be excluded.
Pearls and pitfalls
- Externally validated across several European primary-care cohorts.
- Complements, but should not replace, clinical judgement and ECG.