Formulae or Lookup Tables?

[OverKnight]

I am trying to create a spreadsheet that will calculate medical predicted values. Which prediction equation to use is based upon gender, age and race. I think the best way to do this is to have the sheet first decide which equation should be used, and then use the correct equation to perform the calculation. Gender (of course) has two variables, male or female. Age has three variables: pediatric, adolescent and adult. Race has four variables: Asian, Black, Caucasian and Mexican. This means there could be a total of 18 equations (the equations themselves utilize gender, age and height as variables). What is the best way to do this? Can a formula be used for all of these values, or would lookup tables be the best approach? I was able to create a lookup table that looks at the gender, age and race entries, with the result being a text description, i.e., Pediatric Caucasian Male, Asian Adult Female, etc., but I don’t know how to “point” these results from the lookup table towards the correct equation. I don’t know which is the best approach; can anyone show me how to do this?

Thank you - please let me know if this isn't clear.