Ranson / BISAP (acute pancreatitis)
Score Ranson criteria and BISAP side by side for risk-stratifying acute pancreatitis.
Open the calculator → Runs in your browser. Data leaves only if you deliberately send a problem report from the interactive tool.
Example
- Ranson admission: age > 55
- Yes
- Ranson admission: WBC > 16k
- Yes
- BISAP: BUN > 25 mg/dL
- Yes
- BISAP: age > 60
- Yes
Result: Ranson 2 - roughly 2% mortality; BISAP 2 - low risk.
The tool opens with these values already filled in. Replace them with your own.
What the result means
- Ranson 0-2
- Roughly 2% mortality in acute pancreatitis.
- Ranson 3-4
- Roughly 15% mortality.
- Ranson 5-6
- Roughly 40% mortality.
- Ranson 7-11
- Roughly 100% mortality.
What you enter
- Ranson admission: age > 55
- Ranson admission: WBC > 16k
- Ranson admission: glucose > 200 mg/dL
- Ranson admission: LDH > 350 IU/L
- Ranson admission: AST > 250 IU/L
- Ranson 48 h: hematocrit drop > 10%
- Ranson 48 h: BUN rise > 5 mg/dL
- Ranson 48 h: calcium < 8 mg/dL
The other 8 fields
- Ranson 48 h: PaO2 < 60 mmHg
- Ranson 48 h: base deficit > 4 mEq/L
- Ranson 48 h: fluid sequestration > 6 L
- BISAP: BUN > 25 mg/dL
- BISAP: altered mental status
- BISAP: SIRS
- BISAP: age > 60
- BISAP: pleural effusion
What this is
Ranson uses five admission factors (age >55, WBC >16, glucose >200, LDH >350, AST >250) and six 48-hour factors (hematocrit drop, BUN rise, calcium <8, PaO2 <60, base deficit >4, fluid sequestration >6 L) - higher totals correlate with higher mortality. BISAP is a five-item bedside score (BUN >25, impaired mental status, SIRS, age >60, pleural effusion) calibrated for the first 24 hours. Sophie Well computes both and reports each band. Source: Ranson JH et al. Surg Gynecol Obstet 1974;139:69-81; Wu BU et al. Gut 2008;57:1698-1703.
When to use it
Use this in the ED or on inpatient admission for a patient with confirmed acute pancreatitis to triage the level of care - floor versus step-down versus ICU - and to anticipate the need for aggressive fluid resuscitation, early enteral nutrition, or imaging for necrosis. BISAP gives an answer at the front door from data already drawn; Ranson is more discriminating but only finalizes at 48 hours, which is why most modern algorithms run BISAP at admission and reserve Ranson as the 48-hour reassessment. Neither score replaces the revised Atlanta classification, contrast-enhanced CT findings, or the clinical trajectory.
How this is calculated
Ranson JH, et al. Surg Gynecol Obstet. 1974;139(1):69-81. Wu BU, et al. BISAP. Gut. 2008;57(12):1698-1703. Read the sources: Ranson 1974 (Ranson criteria) ↗, Wu 2008 (BISAP) ↗
A reference and educational tool. Not medical, legal, or financial advice, and not a substitute for clinician judgment.