1. What is BSA-based Dosing?

Body Surface Area (BSA) dosing is a method of calculating medication doses based on a patient's body surface area rather than just weight. This method is particularly important for chemotherapy drugs and other medications with narrow therapeutic windows.

2. How Does the Calculator Work?

The calculator uses the BSA dose formula:

Where:

• \( D_{m2} \) — Dose per square meter (mg/m²)
• \( \text{BSA} \) — Body surface area (m²)

Explanation: The equation multiplies the standard dose per square meter by the patient's actual body surface area to determine the appropriate individualized dose.

3. Importance of BSA Dosing

Details: BSA dosing helps standardize drug doses across patients of different sizes, reducing toxicity risks while maintaining therapeutic effectiveness, especially for drugs that don't distribute evenly in body water or fat.

4. Using the Calculator

Tips: Enter the standard dose per square meter (usually found in drug references) and the patient's calculated BSA (from Mosteller, DuBois, or other formulas). Both values must be positive numbers.

5. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q1: Why use BSA instead of weight for dosing?
A: BSA correlates better with metabolic rate and organ size for many drugs, particularly chemotherapeutic agents.

Q2: How is BSA calculated?
A: Common methods include Mosteller formula: √(height[cm] × weight[kg]/3600) or DuBois formula: 0.007184 × weight[kg]^0.425 × height[cm]^0.725.

Q3: Are there drugs that shouldn't use BSA dosing?
A: Yes, some drugs are dosed by actual weight, ideal weight, or adjusted body weight depending on their pharmacokinetics.

Q4: What's the typical BSA range for adults?
A: Average BSA is about 1.7 m² for men and 1.6 m² for women, typically ranging from 1.4-2.2 m².

Q5: Should BSA dosing be used for obese patients?
A: Some protocols use adjusted BSA or cap the BSA at 2 m² for obese patients to avoid overdosing.