Child-Pugh Parameters — FRCA Primary MCQ

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HardPhysiology - Gastrointestinal & HepaticChild-Pugh ParametersFRCA Primary

A patient with cirrhosis is assessed using Child–Pugh classification. Which finding contributes to Child–Pugh but not directly to the MELD score?

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Correct answer: C — Clinical severity of ascites

The best answer is “Clinical severity of ascites”. Child–Pugh includes bilirubin, albumin, INR, ascites and encephalopathy; ascites is a clinical severity category. MELD is principally laboratory based and uses bilirubin, INR and creatinine, with MELD-Na incorporating sodium. Albumin is Child–Pugh-specific as well, but is not offered. The question does not imply either score substitutes for clinical perioperative assessment.

Reference: RCoA, Primary FRCA syllabus: https://www.rcoa.ac.uk/sites/default/files/documents/2026-01/Primary-FRCA-Syllabus.pdf; Child–Pugh versus MELD score for prognosis in cirrhosis: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4779019/