Body surface area (BSA) estimates the skin-area scale of a person from height and weight. The Mosteller formula is BSA = √((cm × kg) / 3600) square meters. It is a clinical estimate used in some drug-dosing protocols. It is not a diagnosis, not your true measured surface, and not permission to dose medication.
BSA (Mosteller)1.752 m²
Height used170 cm
Weight used65 kg
How this calculation works
Metric: plug height in centimeters and weight in kilograms into √((cm × kg)/3600).
Imperial: height feet and inches convert with 1 in = 2.54 cm; pounds with 1 lb = 0.45359237 kg, then the same formula.
A 180 cm, 80 kg adult gives √(14400/3600) = √4 = 2.00 m². A 170 cm, 65 kg adult is about 1.752 m².
Other formulas (Du Bois, Haycock) exist and disagree by a few percent. This page is Mosteller only. Oncology and pediatric dosing must follow the treating team’s protocol, not a website.
Worked example
170 cm and 65 kg → √(11050/3600) ≈ 1.752 m². 180 cm and 80 kg → 2.00 m² exactly on Mosteller.
Frequently asked questions
Why 3600?
Mosteller (1987) simplified earlier BSA equations into a geometric mean of height and weight scaled so typical adults land near 1.7–2.0 m². It is an empirical convenience, not a law of physics.
Can I use this to dose chemotherapy?
No. Dosing is a licensed-clinician task with protocol BSA rules, capping, and lab values. This is arithmetic only.
Is BSA better than BMI?
They answer different questions. BMI is kg/m² for weight status; BSA is m² for scaling some physiologic and pharmacologic quantities.
Children?
Mosteller is used in pediatrics in some protocols, but infant/neonate dosing is specialized. Do not treat this output as a pediatric order.
Amputations or edema?
Weight no longer tracks “usual” BSA. Clinical teams adjust. The formula will not.