title: Calculation of body surface area via computed tomography-guided modeling in domestic rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus).
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To optimize the use of CT-guided modeling for the calculation of body surface area (BSA) in domestic rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus). Animals-12 domestic rabbits.
  
  
  METHODS
  Adult rabbits (body weight, 1 to > 4 kg) that were client-owned animals undergoing CT for disease diagnosis or deceased laboratory animals donated from other research projects were scanned with a CT scanner. Images were transferred to a radiation therapy planning software program. Image slices were captured as contiguous slices at 100 kVp and 100 mA and processed to 0.1-cm-thick sections. The length of each contoured slice was summed to calculate a final BSA measurement. Nonlinear regression analysis was then used to derive an equation for the calculation of BSA in rabbits.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The constant calculated by use of this method was 9.9 (range, 9.59 to 10). The R(2) for the goodness of fit was 0.9332. The equation that best described BSA as a function of body weight for domestic rabbits with this method was as follows: BSA = (9.9 × [body weight {in grams}](2/3))/10,000.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The BSA calculated via the CT-guided method yielded results similar to those obtained with equations for other similarly sized mammals and verified the use of such equations for rabbits. Additionally, this technique can be used for species that lack equations for the accurate calculation of BSA.
authors.affiliation: Department of Comparative Medicine, School of Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA.
authors.forename: Ashley M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Zehnder
authors.forename: Michelle G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Hawkins
authors.forename: Earl A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Trestrail
authors.forename: Randall W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Holt
authors.forename: Michael S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Kent
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001830:Body Surface Area / Q000662:veterinary; D001835:Body Weight; D054796:Drug Dosage Calculations; D011817:Rabbits / Q000502:physiology*; D012044:Regression Analysis; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000379:methods*; D014730:Veterinary Medicine / Q000379:methods*