MEWS Score Calculator
Our MEWS score calculator is a simple tool for computing the Modified Early Warning Score of your patient. The calculations provided here are suitable for patients hospitalized due to COVID-19 infection, surgery, or any other serious medical condition.
The MEWS score will evaluate the mortality risk connected to your patient's state and will indicate a need for increased medical attention. ⏱️
Read on to discover how to correctly measure MEWS in the medical setting and find out what is a bad MEWS score. We will also discuss the most critical warning signs in the hospital work routine.
What is a MEWS score?
The MEWS score stands for the Modified Early Warning Score. We use it to quickly determine whether a particular patient needs increased medical attention.
The original EWS score originated in the late 90's — it was modified later in the hope to cover a broader spectrum of patients in different clinical situations. There are also other versions of EWS score designed for specific applications; these include:
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NEWS — National Early Warning Score
Developed by the Royal College of Physicians to bring a common national standard for UK hospitals.
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MEOWS — Modified Early Obstetric Warning Score 🤰
Designed for postpartum and pregnant women's care.
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PEWS — Paediatric Early Warning Score 🧒
Used in patients under 16 years of age.
Why do we choose MEWS?
MEWS checks for the most important signs of deterioration of the patient's condition: shock, infection, as well as neurological, cardiological, or pulmonological abnormalities. This scale also has an extremely straightforward interpretation. It has a sensitivity of 75% and specificity of 83% for a threshold of 4 or more points.
Use of MEWS in patients with COVID-19
The most common reason for the deterioration of hospitalized patients is respiratory compromise. MEWS is a score that emphasizes these kinds of abnormalities, making it a perfect tool for assessing patients with respiratory distress caused by the cytokine storm present during SARS-CoV-2 infection.
💡 Some countries chose MEWS score as a recommended tool for assessing COVID-19 patients.
Do you already know it all? Check our other tools for emergency state & quick patient evaluation. For instance, NIH stroke scale calculator will help you to assess the impairment caused by a stroke, and GRACE Score calculator will help you determine the probability of death in acute coronary syndrome (ACS) patients. With Omni SOFA score calculator, you can determine the extent of organ dysfunction in critically ill patients.
MEWS score meaning
MEWS score is delightfully easy to understand; look at the table below and compare your patient's results with the enumerated MEWS ranges.
MEWS score | Description | Risk of death or ICU admission |
|---|---|---|
<3 | Patient in a stable condition | 7.9% |
3-4 | Signs of respiratory failure. Consider higher level of care. | 12.7% |
≥5 | Patient in a critical condition. Higher level of care recommended. | 30% |
💡 In COVID-19 patients, some people with MEWS <3 and fully developed symptoms of the disease might also require hospitalization!
is recommended in all patients, regardless of their MEWS results.
How to calculate the MEWS score?
Our modified early warning score tool uses the following equation:
MEWS score = Systolic blood pressure + Heart rate + Urine output + Respiratory rate + Temperature + AVPU
To obtain the number of points for a given category, use the table below:
Score | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Systolic BP (mmHg) | >199 | 100-199 | 80-99 | 70-79 | <70 | ||
Heart rate (bpm) | >129 | 110-129 | 100-109 | 50-99 | 40-49 | 30-39 | <30 |
Temperature (°C) | >38.9 | 38-38.9 | 36-37.9 | 35-35.9 | 34-34.9 | <34 | |
Respiratory rate (breaths/min) | >35 | 31-35 | 21-30 | 9-20 | <7 | ||
Urine output ml/kg/h | None | < 0.5 | Normal | ||||
AVPU | Alert | Verbal | Pain | Unresponsive |
❗ The MEWSC score calculator shouldn't be used as a substitute for clinical knowledge or judgment. Always double-check your calculations.