Question

A male patient weighing 76 kg is placed on heparin therapy for the prevention of deep vein thrombosis after surgery.

How many milliliters of a heparin injection containing 5000 units/mL should be administered for a loading dose of 80 units/kg?

What should be the infusion rate, in mL/h, using a solution that contains heparin 25,000 units/500 mL, to administer 18 units/kg/h?

Six hours after heparin therapy is initiated, the patient's aPTT is found to be 75 seconds. Adjust the infusion rate, in mL/h, according to the heparin protocol (Fig. 10.1).

Answer 1

The concentration of the heparin injection is 5000 units/mL, so the number of milliliters required would be 6080 units / 5000 units/mL = 1.216 mL. Therefore, the infusion rate would be 0.05472 mL/h.

Step-by-step explanation:

To calculate the amount of heparin injection containing 5000 units/mL to be administered for a loading dose of 80 units/kg, we need to multiply the weight of the patient by the loading dose. In this case, the weight of the patient is 76 kg, so the loading dose is 80 units/kg * 76 kg = 6080 units.

To calculate the infusion rate in mL/h using a solution that contains heparin 25,000 units/500 mL to administer 18 units/kg/h, we need to multiply the weight of the patient by the infusion rate. In this case,the weight of the patient is 76 kg, so the infusion rate is 18 units/kg/h * 76 kg = 1368 units/h.

The concentration of the heparin solution is 25,000 units/500 mL, so the number of milliliters required would be 1368 units / 25000 units/mL = 0.05472 mL.