Computer-Based Medical Consultations: MYCIN

Computer-Based Medical Consultations: MYCIN focuses on MYCIN, a novel computer-based expert system designed to assist physicians with clinical decisions concerning the selection of appropriate therapy for patients with infections. It discusses medical computing, artificial intelligence, and the clinical problem areas for which the MYCIN program is designed, and it describes in detail how the MYCIN program helps physicians in making decisions. Comprised of seven chapters, this volume begins with an overview of MYCIN and the criteria used in its design. It then discusses data structures and control structures in the context of prior work regarding rule-based problem-solving, inferential model building and inexact reasoning in medicine. The book also explores MYCIN'S ability to answer questions with respect to its knowledge base and the details of a specific consultation, evaluation and future extensions of the MYCIN system, the limitations and accomplishments of MYCIN, and its contributions in artificial intelligence and computer-based medical decision making. This book is a valuable source of information for computer scientists and members of the medical community.