The Karnofsky Performance Scale is an assessment tool intended to assist clinicians and caretakers in gauging a patient's functional status and ability to carry out activities of daily living.
It is important to assess a patient's performance on a regular basis, especially as the effects of HIV progress. Documentation of Karnofsky scores over time may be very useful in following a patient's course of illness, and can help a disabled patient in his/her application for disability benefits. It also is used for some research applications.
|Normal; no complaints; no evidence of disease||100|
|Able to carry on normal activity; minor signs or symptoms of disease||90|
|Normal activity with effort; some signs or symptoms of disease||80|
|Cares for self; unable to carry on normal activity or do work||70|
|Requires occasional assistance, but is able to care for most personal needs||60|
|Requires considerable assistance and frequent medical care||50|
|Disabled; requires special care and assistance||40|
|Severely disabled; hospitalization indicated although death not imminent||30|
|Very sick; hospitalization necessary; requires active support treatment||20|
|Moribund; fatal processes progressing rapidly||10|