Body Surface Area Calculator
Calculate BSA using Du Bois, Mosteller, and Haycock formulas.
Common medical uses:
- Chemotherapy dosing
- Burn assessment
- Cardiac index calculation
- Renal function (GFR)
- Medication dosing
Formula History
The Du Bois formula was developed in 1916 and remains the gold standard. It was derived from actual measurements of body surface area using a geometric technique on 9 individuals.
Clinical Importance
BSA is preferred over body weight for drug dosing because it correlates better with metabolic rate and organ sizes, providing more accurate dosing especially for medications with narrow therapeutic windows.
Frequently Asked Questions
BSA is the measured or calculated surface area of a human body. It's used in medicine for drug dosing, burn assessment, and kidney function evaluation.
Many medications, especially chemotherapy drugs, are dosed based on BSA rather than weight alone. BSA provides a more accurate measure of metabolic mass.
The Du Bois formula is the most widely used in clinical practice, though the Mosteller formula is popular due to its simplicity.
Average adult BSA is about 1.7 m² for women and 1.9 m² for men. Normal range is typically 1.5-2.2 m².