The applicability of the dubois height weight formula for measurement of body surface of Indian subjects

Abstract

The body surface area of 18 healthy adult Indian subjects was measured by taking part by part linear measurements for the whole body with the help of Anthropometry Beam Calipers and applying Du Bois linear formula method. The surface area values computed from Du Bois Height-weight formula were compared with the measured values. The average error in the eighteen cases is 1.5 percent. The standard deviation of the errors is 1.8 percent about the mean error of -0.5 percent. The errors are not statistically significant. As the original Du Bois formula itself is stated to have an average error of 1.5 percent, the present work confirms that the accuracy, with which Du Bois formula predicts body surface, is not sensibly different for Indians as against Europeans