1. What is Body Surface Area (BSA)?

Definition: BSA is the calculated surface area of the human body, often used in medical practice for medication dosing and physiological measurements.

Purpose: It provides a more accurate measure than body weight alone for determining proper drug dosages, especially for chemotherapy, pediatric medications, and other critical treatments.

2. How Does the Mosteller Formula Work?

The calculator uses the Mosteller formula:

Where:

• \( BSA \) — Body surface area (square meters)
• \( W \) — Weight (kilograms)
• \( H \) — Height (centimeters)

Explanation: This formula is widely used because of its simplicity and reasonable accuracy for both children and adults.

3. Importance of BSA Calculation

Details: Accurate BSA calculation is crucial for proper medication dosing, determining chemotherapy doses, calculating renal clearance, and assessing burn injuries.

4. Using the Calculator

Tips: Enter the patient's weight in kilograms and height in centimeters. All values must be > 0.

5. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q1: Why use BSA instead of body weight for dosing?
A: BSA correlates better with metabolic processes and drug distribution than weight alone, especially for medications with narrow therapeutic windows.

Q2: What are other BSA formulas?
A: Other common formulas include DuBois & DuBois, Haycock, and Boyd, but Mosteller is most widely used in clinical practice.

Q3: How accurate is the Mosteller formula?
A: It's accurate within 1-2% of more complex formulas and is the recommended method by many medical organizations.

Q4: When would I need to calculate BSA?
A: Common uses include chemotherapy dosing, pediatric medication, anesthesia, and research studies.

Q5: What's a normal BSA range?
A: Average BSA is about 1.7 m² for adult men and 1.6 m² for adult women, but varies significantly with body size.