American Society of Anesthesiologists


A·mer·i·can So·ci·e·ty of An·es·the·si·ol·o·gists (ASA) Pa·tient Clas·si·fi·ca·tion Sta·tus

(ă-mer'i-kăn sŏ-sī'ĕ-tē an'ĕs-thē'zē-ol'ŏ-jists pā'shĕnt klas'i-fi-kā'shŭn stat'ŭs) A five-level thumbnail assessment of patients' condition: I, healthy; II, mild systemic disorder; III, severe systemic disorder; IV, severe systemic disorder with threat to life; and V, state of illness sufficiently dire so as to indicate death within 24 hours without surgical intervention.