INTERNIST-I properties: representing common sense and good medical practice in a computerized medical knowledge base.

INTERNIST-I is an experimental diagnostic consultant program for use on clinically challenging cases in internal medicine. Properties are a part of the INTERNIST-I knowledge representation scheme which embody essential information about the medical facts contained in the knowledge base. Properties provide the INTERNIST-I program with a measure of common sense and encourage the program to follow good medical practice. Properties substantially influence the behavior of the INTERNIST-I diagnostic program during case analyses. This paper reviews the implementation and significance of properties.