Your patient is a 40-year-old man who was burned when he spilled gasoline on his pants as he was standing near the pilot light of his hot water heater.He has partial thickness burns from his feet to just above his knees,and circumferentially around both legs.Using the rule of nines,which of the following most accurately represents the extent of body surface area burned?
A) 18%
B) 9%
C) 36%
D) 4.5%

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The rule of nines divides the body into areas that represent 9% (or multiples thereof) of the body surface area. Each leg (front and back) accounts for 18% of the body surface area. Since both legs are burned from the feet to just above the knees, it is appropriate to consider each leg as 9% (half of 18% because only the front or the back is considered, but here it's circumferential so it's the full 18% per leg). Therefore, for both legs, the total is 18% + 18% = 36%. However, since the question specifies the burns are from the feet to just above the knees, not the entire leg, the most accurate estimate without overestimating would be 18%, assuming the burns cover approximately half of each leg's total surface area.

Your Patient Is a 40-Year-Old Man Who Was Burned When