Question

When ibuprofen is given for fever to children six months of age up to two years the usual dose is 5 mg per kilogram of body weight and the fever is 102.5°f how much medicine would be usual dose for a 18 month old weighing 55.4 pounds

Answer 1

To calculate the dose of ibuprofen for a child weighing 55.4 pounds, convert the weight to kilograms and multiply by the usual dose of 5 mg per kilogram. The result is 125.5 mg, which we round to 100 mg to match the available tablet sizes.

Step-by-step explanation:

To determine the usual dose of ibuprofen for a child weighing 55.4 pounds, we first need to convert the weight from pounds to kilograms, since the dosage is given in milligrams per kilogram of body weight. There are 2.20462 pounds in a kilogram.

To convert pounds to kilograms, divide the weight in pounds by 2.20462:

55.4 pounds ÷ 2.20462 pounds/kilogram = 25.1 kilograms (rounded to one decimal place).

The usual dose of ibuprofen is 5 mg per kilogram of body weight. Therefore, for a child that weighs 25.1 kilograms:

Usual dose = 5 mg/kg × 25.1 kg = 125.5 mg.

Since ibuprofen is commonly sold as 200 mg tablets, we can round the dose to the nearest half tablet to ensure safe administration. This means the 18 month old child should receive about 100 mg of ibuprofen for a fever of 102.5°F.