About
The Model for End-Stage Liver Disease (MELD) is an objective prognostic score estimating short-term mortality and prioritizing candidates for liver transplantation. The original MELD incorporated serum bilirubin, creatinine, and international normalized ratio (INR), reflecting hepatic and renal dysfunction. MELD-Na, adopted by OPTN/UNOS in 2016, added serum sodium to improve mortality prediction, particularly among patients with hyponatremia. MELD 3.0, implemented by OPTN in 2023, further incorporates serum albumin and sex, recalibrates variable coefficients, modifies creatinine limits, and includes interaction terms. These refinements improve mortality discrimination, address sex-associated disparities, and enhance equitable allocation of deceased-donor livers according to medical urgency.