For an infant/toddler, what percentage of the body surface area is attributed to each leg?

In pediatric assessments, the distribution of body surface area (BSA) is important for estimating burns and medication dosages. For infants and toddlers, a useful rule of thumb is that each leg accounts for 13.5% of the total body surface area. This percentage is based on the Lund and Browder chart, which allows for age variations in body proportions.

Infants and toddlers have proportionally larger heads compared to their legs when compared to adults, which affects how we allocate BSA percentages. For example, in adults, each leg constitutes closer to 18% of the body surface area, while for children, this needs to be adjusted downward due to their differing body proportions, leading to the conclusion that each leg in this age group represents 13.5% of the total surface area. Understanding this proportion is crucial for appropriate clinical responses in pediatric emergency care.