Question

A client with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) begins active labor at 38 weeks gestation and receives a prescription for zidovudine 2 mg/kg IV, to be administered over 1 hour. The client weighs 185 lbs. Based on the client's weight, how many mg should the nurse prepare to administer? (Enter numerical value only. If rounding is required, round to the nearest whole number.)

a. 168 mg
b. 185 mg
c. 200 mg
d. 213 mg

Answer 1

To find the correct dosage of zidovudine for the client, you convert her weight to kilograms and then multiply by the dosage rate. For a client weighing 185 lbs, the dosage is 168 mg, which will be administered to reduce the mother-to-child transmission of HIV.

Step-by-step explanation:

The client who is beginning active labor at 38 weeks gestation and has been prescribed zidovudine needs the correct dosage calculated based on her weight. First, the client's weight in pounds must be converted to kilograms by dividing by 2.2. This gives us approximately 84 kilograms. Using the prescribed dosage of 2 mg/kg, we multiply the client's weight in kilograms by this dosage to get the total milligrams to be administered. Calculating 84 kg times 2 mg/kg gives us 168 mg.

Therefore, the nurse should prepare to administer 168 mg of zidovudine. This dosage will help reduce the risk of mother-to-child transmission of HIV during labor, which is particularly important considering that rates of transmission can be reduced significantly with the proper administration of antiretrovirals.