Question

A nurse is preparing to administer heparin 5,000 units subcutaneously. Available is heparin injection 10,000 units/mL. How many mL should the nurse administer per dose? (Round the answer to the nearest tenth. Use a leading zero if it applies. Do not use a trailing zero.)

A) 0.5 mL
B) 0.6 mL
C) 0.7 mL
D) 0.8 mL

Answer 1

The nurse should administer 0.3 mL of heparin per dose.

Step-by-step explanation:

To calculate how many mL of heparin the nurse should administer, we can use the formula C₁V₁ = C₂V₂. In this case, C₁ is 10,000 units/mL, C₂ is 5,000 units, and V₂ is what we need to calculate. Rearranging the formula to solve for V₂, we get V₂ = (C₁ * V₁) / C₂. Plugging in the values, V₂ = (10,000 units/mL * V₁) / 5,000 units. Simplifying, V₂ = 2V₁. To find V₁, we divide V₂ by 2: V₁ = V₂ / 2.

Since we want to round the answer to the nearest tenth, we can use decimal notation for fractions. Therefore, V₁ = V₂ / 2 = 5000 units / 2 = 2500 units. Converting this to mL, we divide by the concentration of 10,000 units/mL: V₁ = 2500 units / 10,000 units/mL = 0.25 mL.

Therefore, the nurse should administer 0.25 mL of heparin per dose. When rounded to the nearest tenth, the answer is 0.3 mL, so the correct choice is Option D) 0.3 mL.