Lean-scaled weight: a proposed weight scalar to calculate drug doses for obese patients.

摘要

Lean body weight (LBW) is a weight-related quantity that is useful when calculating drug doses for obese patients. The LBW cannot be used directly as a weight scalar because it results in underestimation of doses when they are calculated as milligrams per kilogram. Following is a description of a proposed weight scalar that is proportional to the LBW and normalized for both obese and non-obese patients. Recommended drug doses are often expressed per kilogram of body weight. Total body weight (TBW) is the appropriate weight scalar for use with patients of normal weight; however, both drug distribution and clearance are altered in obesity, and using a milligram per kilogram dose based on TBW may result in drug overdose for morbidly obese patients.