The Cardiovascular
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SOFA score (Sequential Organ Failure Assessment)

Organ-dysfunction severity in critically ill patients.

SOFA score (Sequential Organ Failure Assessment)
Respiration (PaO₂/FiO₂, mmHg)
Values with respiratory support where marked
Coagulation (platelets, ×10³/µL)
Liver (bilirubin, mg/dL)
Cardiovascular
Vasopressor doses in µg/kg/min
CNS (Glasgow Coma Scale)
Renal (creatinine, mg/dL)
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When to use

  • Quantifying and tracking organ dysfunction in critically ill patients; an acute rise of ≥2 points in suspected infection defines sepsis (Sepsis-3).

Formula

Sum of six organ subscores (respiration, coagulation, liver, cardiovascular, CNS, renal), each 0–4. Range 0–24.

Pearls and pitfalls

  • It is the change in SOFA that matters for the sepsis definition; assume a baseline of 0 in patients not known to have pre-existing organ dysfunction.

References

  1. Vincent JL, et al. The SOFA (Sepsis-related Organ Failure Assessment) score to describe organ dysfunction/failure. Intensive Care Med. 1996;22(7):707–10.
  2. Ferreira FL, et al. Serial evaluation of the SOFA score to predict outcome in critically ill patients. JAMA. 2001;286(14):1754–8.