Table 1.
Cellulitis severity classificationa
Eron/CREST classification | Modified ‘Dundee’ classification | |
---|---|---|
Class I | No or well-controlled comorbidities, systemically well | No sepsis, no comorbidities and SEWS <4 |
Class II | Systemically unwell with no uncontrolled comorbidities (eg obesity, peripheral vascular disease or venous insufficiency) or systemically well with poorly controlled comorbidities, which may delay their recovery | Documentation of one or more significant comorbidities (eg obesity, peripheral vascular disease or venous insufficiency), no sepsis, SEWS <4 |
Class III | Marked systemic inflammatory response (altered mental status, tachypnoea, tachycardia, hypotension etc) or may have very poorly controlled comorbidities which may affect their response to treatment or have a limb-threatening infection due to vascular compromise | Sepsis but SEWS <4 |
Class IV | Septic shock or life threatening presentations such as necrotising fasciitis requiring urgent critical care and surgical input | Sepsis and SEWS ≥4 |
aLeft-hand column adapted from reference 16, right-hand column adapted from reference 17. CREST = Clinical Resource Efficiency Support Team; SEWS = Standardised Early Warning Score