Question

The physican's order reads: Give Ampicillin 500 mg IV q6h. Supplied: Ampicillin 1g vial in powder form. Reconstitution: Add 3.5 mL of sterile water resulting in 250 mg of Ampicillin per mL. How much Ampicillin solution would you draw up in the syringe?

Answer 1

To administer the prescribed 500 mg dose of Ampicillin IV, 2 mL of the reconstituted Ampicillin solution should be drawn up in the syringe, as the solution has a concentration of 250 mg per mL after reconstitution.

Step-by-step explanation:

In order to determine how much Ampicillin solution to draw up in the syringe, we need to follow the physician's order, which requires administering 500 mg of Ampicillin intravenously every 6 hours. According to the information provided, after reconstitution of the 1g vial with 3.5 mL of sterile water, we obtain a concentration of 250 mg of Ampicillin per mL. To obtain a dose of 500 mg of the solution, the required volume can be calculated using the simple ratio:

250 mg/mL = 500 mg/x mL

After cross-multiplying and solving for x, we find that:

x = (500 mg) / (250 mg/mL) = 2 mL

Therefore, you would draw up 2 mL of the reconstituted Ampicillin solution to achieve a 500 mg dose. It's crucial to ensure accuracy in this process as proper dosing is essential for effective treatment and patient safety.