Body Surface Area Calculator

Body Surface Area (BSA) is the total surface area of the human body, measured in square meters (m²). In clinical environments, BSA is often preferred over body weight alone because it correlates better with blood volume, cardiac output, and active metabolic mass.

BSA is primarily used by medical professionals to compute safe dosages for high-potency drugs (such as chemotherapy), measure the cardiac index (cardiac output relative to body size), and determine fluid resuscitation volumes for burn injuries.

The Mosteller formula is the most popular because it is easy to remember and highly accurate. The Du Bois formula is the oldest and most historically common. The Haycock formula is frequently favored in pediatric care because it works well for infants and children.

The average BSA is roughly 1.9 m² for adult men and 1.6 m² for adult women. However, individual BSA varies widely based on height and body structure.

Each formula was derived using study groups with different ranges of height and weight. For example, Du Bois was based on a small group of adult patients, while Haycock included infants, children, and adults, leading to slight variations in scaling coefficients.