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Gastroenterology

Ranson's Criteria for Pancreatitis

Classic 11-point severity scoring for acute pancreatitis — 5 admission criteria plus 6 criteria at 48 hours

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What is the Ranson's Criteria for Pancreatitis?

Clinical background · Scoring criteria · Evidence-based pearls

Gastroenterology
Developed by: John H.C. Ranson, New York University School of Medicine (1974)
Validated in: Original cohort of 100 patients; subsequently validated in thousands of pancreatitis patients

Ranson's Criteria were developed by Dr. John Ranson at New York University in 1974 from a retrospective analysis of 100 patients with acute pancreatitis. The original 11-criteria system (5 measured at admission + 6 at 48 hours) was specifically validated for pancreatitis from any aetiology, with separate criteria for alcoholic pancreatitis. For 50 years, Ranson's Criteria remained the most widely taught and used severity assessment tool in acute pancreatitis — though its 48-hour completion requirement and complexity have led to its gradual replacement by BISAP, APACHE-II, and CT severity index in contemporary practice.

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