‘Multimorbidity’: an acceptable term for patients or time for a rebrand?

DEFINITIONS AND MEANINGS

The simultaneous presence of multiple pathological conditions is the norm.¹ The construct of comorbidity was defined by Feinstein as: ‘any distinct additional entity that has existed or may occur during the clinical course of a patient who has the index disease under study’.^2,3 Multimorbidity refers to the co-occurrence of multiple chronic conditions in an individual,^4,5 or the presence of two or more long-term conditions.⁶

Evidence suggests that people with multimorbidity report worse experiences in primary care.⁷ Muth et al describe the Ariadne principles, which might support clinicians in managing patients with multimorbidity, and include: ‘assessing potential interactions’, ‘eliciting patient preferences and priorities’, and ‘individualised patient management’. ⁸

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guideline for multimorbidity ⁶ emphasises the need to take a person-centred, holistic approach to patient care, and provides guidance about key principles to consider when managing patients with multimorbidity. The guideline attempts to shift the emphasis from single-disease guidelines, and care delivered in silos, to encouraging clinicians to work with patients …