What percentage of total body surface does one leg represent in burn assessment?

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Cross-section diagram of human skin showing burn depth by degree, with arrows indicating that first-degree burns affect only the epidermis, second-degree burns reach the dermis, third-degree burns extend into subcutaneous tissue, and fourth-degree burns penetrate to muscle. — burn This diagram shows how burn injuries are classified by severity. First-degree burns damage the outer skin, known as the epidermis. First-degree burns are the least severe form of burn injury. Second-degree burns damage the outer skin and some of the underlying skin, known as the dermis, which also includes some connective tissue. Third-degree burns damage all the layers of skin, including subcutaneous tissue. Fourth-degree burns, which are the most severe, destroy every layer of skin and also damage muscle, tendons, and bones.

In the assessment of burn injuries, surgeons estimate the extent of the damage as a percentage of the body’s total skin area. According to this method, each leg represents approximately 18 percent of the total body surface area.1