Expert advisor system for the management of interventions in acute myocardial infraction

The author has designed a prototype of a computer-based expert system for assisting with the management of intervention in patients undergoing an acute myocardial infarction (MI), combining a traditional rule-based model with hypertext capabilities. Knowledge was extracted from the major clinical trials of intervention for acute MI and from studies on the outcome for patients with MI treated routinely. Rules were formulated to capture the knowledge contained in the observations and recommendations made in these studies. The knowledge base can be accessed as a consultative system, allowing the user to explore various therapeutic options for a specific patient while providing opportunities for obtaining and pursuing unfamiliar concepts in greater depth. Where possible, data which the system has acquired about the patient under consideration is used to highlight pertinent categories in the display of tabular information. A browse mode is also available, and allows the system to be accessed in a more general fashion as a computerized textbook, displaying topics, summaries, abstracts from articles in the medical literature, tables, and figures, all using hypertext facilities