An exploratory study using data envelopment analysis to assess neurotrauma patients in the intensive care unit.

Patients with severe head trauma were studied retrospectively to determine if Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) could successfully model patients early in their stay in an intensive care unit. Variables examined were cerebral perfusion pressure, body temperature, mean arterial pressure, serum osmolarity and pCO2. Unlike regression-based models that focus on mean values for the group, DEA evaluates each patient individually calculating an "efficiency" score based on a patient's ability to maximize output for a given set of physiologic inputs.