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Predicted Body Weight & Tidal Volume (ARDSNet)

Predicted body weight for ventilation and tidal volumes at 4–8 mL/kg.

For healthcare professionalsRespiratoryv1.0.1

For healthcare professionals / clinical use. Not a self-diagnosis tool.

Your measurements

Sex

Calculated on your device. Nothing is sent to a server.

Your result will appear here

Enter your measurements, then press Calculate.

Methodology

ARDS Network (2000)

PBW = 50 (men) or 45.5 (women) + 0.91 × (height cm − 152.4); Vt = mL/kg × PBW

Lung-protective ventilation sets tidal volume by predicted, not actual, body weight; the ARDSNet protocol targets 6 mL/kg PBW.

Who it is for
Adults receiving mechanical ventilation.
Version
1.0.1

How this calculator works

Where the formula comes from

  • The ARDS Network trial (2000, 861 patients) compared tidal volumes of 6 and 12 mL/kg predicted body weight; mortality was 31.0% vs 39.8%.[1]

The inputs

  • Tidal volume in the trial was set per kilogram of predicted body weight, with mean volumes on days 1–3 of 6.2 and 11.8 mL/kg.[1]

What guidelines say

  • The 2017 ATS/ESICM/SCCM guideline strongly recommends lower tidal volumes (4–8 mL/kg predicted body weight) and plateau pressure below 30 cmH₂O for adults with ARDS.[2]

Sources

  1. Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome Network. Ventilation with lower tidal volumes as compared with traditional tidal volumes for acute lung injury and the acute respiratory distress syndrome. N Engl J Med. 2000;342(18):1301–1308. doi:10.1056/NEJM200005043421801
  2. Fan E, Del Sorbo L, Goligher EC, et al. An official American Thoracic Society/European Society of Intensive Care Medicine/Society of Critical Care Medicine clinical practice guideline: mechanical ventilation in adult patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2017;195(9):1253–1263. doi:10.1164/rccm.201703-0548ST

Compiled from the published sources above. Every statement was agreed independently by three AI research tools (Claude, ChatGPT, DeepSeek) and its source verified in PubMed or Crossref by the Hakeemly editorial team. Not reviewed by a doctor unless stated. Agreed on

Worked example: how to calculate PBW / tidal volume

Inputs

Sex
Male
Height
175 cm

Result

Predicted body weight
70.6 kg (≈ 155.6 lb)
Tidal volume at 6 mL/kg
423 mL
Tidal volume at 4 mL/kg
282 mL
Tidal volume at 8 mL/kg
565 mL

Calculation:

50 + 0.91 × 22.6 = 70.57; × 6 = 423.4

An illustration with sample values, worked out with the same method the tool above uses.

Limitations

  • Ventilator settings are a clinical decision; this tool only performs the arithmetic.

References

  1. Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome Network. Ventilation with lower tidal volumes as compared with traditional tidal volumes for acute lung injury and the acute respiratory distress syndrome. N Engl J Med. 2000;342(18):1301–1308. doi:10.1056/NEJM200005043421801
  2. Fan E, Del Sorbo L, Goligher EC, et al. An official American Thoracic Society/European Society of Intensive Care Medicine/Society of Critical Care Medicine clinical practice guideline: mechanical ventilation in adult patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2017;195(9):1253–1263. doi:10.1164/rccm.201703-0548ST

Continue with your measurements

Shared measurements carry over automatically, in this tab only.

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