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Ideal Body Weight (Devine)

Devine ideal body weight: men 50 kg + 2.3 kg per inch over 5 feet; women 45.5 kg + 2.3 kg per inch over 5 feet. Used for drug dosing (e.g. aminoglycosides, CrCl) and, as ARDSNet predicted body weight, for setting tidal volume (6–8 mL/kg).

  • Height (cm or m or in)
  • Sex: Male; Female
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Formula

IBW (kg) = 50 (men) or 45.5 (women) + 2.3 × (height in inches − 60)

Clinical pearls

  • Below 60 inches (152 cm) the formula extrapolates downward and is unreliable.
  • ARDSNet predicted body weight uses the same formula (in cm: 50 + 0.91 × (cm − 152.4)).

Examples

ibw 180 cm maleideal body weight for a 5'5" womantidal volume weight for 6 foot man

FAQ

How do you calculate ideal body weight?

Men: 50 kg + 2.3 kg for every inch above 5 feet. Women: 45.5 kg + 2.3 kg for every inch above 5 feet.

Which weight do I use for tidal volume?

Predicted (ideal) body weight, typically 6 mL/kg in ARDS and 6–8 mL/kg for lung-protective ventilation.

Evidence

  1. Pai MP, Paloucek FP. The origin of the "ideal" body weight equations. Ann Pharmacother 2000;34:1066–9.

General & Anthropometrics · Reviewed 2026-10-14 · Methodology