In a medical encounter, a past medical history (abbreviated PMH)[1] is the total sum of a patient's health status prior to the presenting problem.
Different sources include different questions to be asked while conducting a PMH, but in general, they include the following: Several acronyms have been developed to categorize the appropriate questions to include: In prehospital medicine, namely EMS, the acronyms SAMPLE or CHAMPS are used.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services[5] has published criteria for what constitutes a reimbursable PMH.
A PMH is considered one of three elements of the "Past, Family, and Social History" (abbreviated as PFSH):[6] A pertinent PFSH consists of at least one of the three components; a full PFSH consists of two or three components for an established patient, or all three components for a new patient visit.
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