Question

The doctor ordered Ceclor 45mg/kg/day PO in 3 divided doses for a patient who weighs 66 lbs. A 75mL stock medication is labeled Ceclor 125mg/mL. How many mL would the nurse administer?

Answer 1

To administer Ceclor to a patient weighing 66 lbs as prescribed by a doctor, the nurse would need to administer 1.2mL of the medication for each of the three daily doses.

Step-by-step explanation:

The nurse would administer 1.2mL of Ceclor for each dose.

To calculate the volume of medication to administer to a 66 lbs patient prescribed Ceclor 45mg/kg/day in three divided doses, we first convert the patient's body weight from pounds to kilograms, knowing that 1 kilogram is approximately 2.2 pounds. So, the patient weighs 66 lbs / 2.2 lbs/kg which is 30kg. Multiplying the body weight in kilograms by the dosage prescribed in mg/kg gives us the total daily dosage in milligrams: 30kg × 45mg/kg equals 1350mg per day. This total daily dosage is divided into three doses, so each dose equals 1350mg / 3, which is 450mg per dose.

To determine the volume, we divide the dose needed by the concentration of the stock medication: 450mg / 125mg/mL equals 3.6mL per day for three doses, hence each dose is 3.6mL/3, which is 1.2mL.