Question

A child is prescribed hydroxyzine (Vistaril) 1.1 mg/kg/day given PO Q 4 hours as necessary. The child weighs 46 pounds. How many mg will you administer each time you administer the medication? (Round weight to the nearest 10th and doses to the nearest 100th.) (Place only the numerical value in the space provided.)

Answer 1

To determine the amount of hydroxyzine to administer each time, divide the weight in pounds by 2.2046 to convert it to kilograms. Then, multiply the weight in kilograms by the prescribed dosage of hydroxyzine to get the daily dosage. Finally, divide the daily dosage by the number of times the medication is given in a day to determine the amount to administer each time.

Step-by-step explanation:

To determine the amount of hydroxyzine to administer each time, we need to use the weight of the child given in pounds and convert it to kilograms. The weight of the child in kilograms is calculated by dividing the weight in pounds by 2.2046. In this case, the weight of the child is 46 pounds, which is approximately 20.87 kilograms (rounded to the nearest 10th).

Next, we multiply the weight in kilograms by the prescribed dosage of hydroxyzine, which is 1.1 mg/kg/day. Multiplying 20.87 kilograms by 1.1 mg/kg/day gives us 22.957 mg/day (rounded to the nearest 100th).

Since the medication is administered every 4 hours, we divide the daily dosage by the number of times the medication is given in a day. In this case, the medication is given q 4 hours, which means it is administered 6 times in a day (24 hours divided by 4). Dividing 22.957 mg/day by 6 gives us approximately 3.826 mg (rounded to the nearest 100th) that should be administered each time the medication is given.