Question

A nurse is preparing to administer phenobarbital 3 mg/kg P0 twice a day to a school-age child who weighs 44 lb, Available is phenobarbital elixir 20 mg/5 mL, How many mL should the nurse plan to administer per dose?

Answer 1

To calculate the volume of phenobarbital elixir to administer to a school-age child weighing 44 lb, we need to determine the weight-based dosage and use a proportion based on the elixir's concentration. The nurse should administer 15 mL of phenobarbital elixir per dose.

Step-by-step explanation:

To determine the amount of phenobarbital elixir that the nurse should administer per dose, we need to calculate the weight-based dosage for the school-age child. The child weighs 44 lb, which is equivalent to approximately 20 kg (44 lb ÷ 2.2 = 20 kg). The prescribed dosage is 3 mg/kg, so the child would require a dose of 3 mg/kg × 20 kg = 60 mg per dose. Since the elixir concentration is 20 mg/5 mL, we can set up a proportion to find the volume of elixir needed: 20 mg/5 mL = 60 mg/x mL. Cross-multiplying, we get 20x = 60 × 5, which simplifies to 20x = 300. Dividing both sides by 20, we find that x = 15. Therefore, the nurse should administer 15 mL of phenobarbital elixir per dose.