Concepts of prognosis

CONCEPT OF PROGNOSIS

  • Prognosis is a veterinary medical term to describe the likely outcome of an illness. When applied to large populations, prognostic estimates can be very accurate: for example the statement "45% of patients with severe septic shock will die within 28 days" can be made with some confidence, because previous research found that this proportion of patients died. However, it is much more difficult to translate this into a prognosis for an individual patient: additional information is needed to determine whether a patient belongs to the 45% who will succumb, or to the 55% who survive. A complete prognosis includes expected time, function, and a description of the disease course such as progressive decline, intermittent crisis, or sudden, unpredictable crisis.
  • Prognosis tells about
    •  The expected course of a disease. 
    •  The patient's chance of recovery.
  • The prognosis predicts the outcome of a disease and therefore the future for the patient, for example, good / favourable /unfavourable /grave etc. The word prognosis comes from the Greek prognostikos (of knowledge beforehand). It combines pro (before) and gnosis (a knowing). Hippocrates used the word prognosis, much as we do today, to mean a foretelling of the course of a disease.  
Last modified: Wednesday, 22 February 2012, 4:47 AM