Question

A patient is to receive 1,00 mL of 5% dextrose in lactated Ringer's over 8 hours. Using tubing with a drop factor of 15 gtt/Ml, the nurse should regulate teh fluid to infuse at how many drops per minute?

Answer 1

The nurse should regulate the IV to administer approximately 31.25 drops per minute using a tubing with a drop factor of 15 gtt/mL for 1,000 mL of 5% dextrose in lactated Ringer's to be infused over 8 hours.

Step-by-step explanation:

The student's question pertains to the calculation of the infusion rate of an intravenous (IV) fluid. Specifically, the student has inquired about the number of drops per minute that the nurse should regulate for the fluid to infuse at when using tubing with a specific drop factor (15 gtt/mL) over a set period of time (8 hours) for a given volume (1,000 mL of 5% dextrose in lactated Ringer's).

To find the answer, we will use the formula: Infusion Rate (gtt/min) = (Volume (mL) × Drop Factor (gtt/mL)) / (Time (min)).

First, convert the hours to minutes: 8 hours × 60 minutes/hour = 480 minutes. Then, apply the values to the formula:

Infusion Rate = (1,000 mL × 15 gtt/mL) / 480 min = 15,000 gtt / 480 min = 31.25 gtt/min.

Therefore, the nurse should regulate the IV to administer approximately 31.25 drops per minute.