Modified Rankin Scale (mRS)

Introduction
This is a standard scale used in stroke trials. An open access calculator is available here. Independence = mRS 0-2

Ambulatory = mRS 0-3

"Good outcome" is variably defined as 0-1, 0-2, 0-3, or even 0-4 depending on the study

Problems with mRS
The scale over-represents ambulation and is not a measure of quality of life. Consider that President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, by virtue of being in a wheelchair, was automatically a mRS 4. Steven Hawking was a mRS 5. Similarly, Sylvia Plath who had poor quality of life and died via suicide was at most a mRS 1, as she had symptoms of depression but was able to do all her prior activities.