1 — short of breath hurrying on the level or up a slight hill
2 — walks slower than peers, or stops for breath at own pace on the level
3 — stops for breath after ~100 m or a few minutes on the level
4 — too breathless to leave the house, or breathless dressing
Enter BMI, FEV1 % predicted and 6-minute walk distance
Evidence
Original publication
Celli BR, Cote CG, Marin JM, et al. The body-mass index, airflow obstruction, dyspnea, and exercise capacity index in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. In 625 patients the 10-point BODE index predicted all-cause and respiratory mortality better than FEV1 alone (each one-point increase raised the hazard of death by ~34%).
New England Journal of Medicine, 2004
Open source
Guideline
Use post-bronchodilator FEV1 % predicted, the modified MRC dyspnoea scale, and a standardised 6-minute walk test. BODE is a prognostic and follow-up tool (e.g. lung-transplant referral discussions, pulmonary-rehabilitation response); it does not by itself set treatment.
Last reviewed: 2026-09
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MedScore is an educational and clinical decision-support tool. It does not provide a diagnosis, a treatment, or a drug-dosing recommendation, and it does not replace clinical judgement or local guidelines. Confirm every result against the original source before acting on it. The treating clinician remains responsible for all decisions.