A nurse is preparing to administer voriconazole 6 mg/kg via intermittent IV bolus to a client who weighs 127 lb. Available is voriconazole 5 mg/mL. How many mL should the nurse administer? (Round the answer to the nearest whole number. Use a leading zero if it applies. Do not use a trailing zero.)
The Correct answer and Explanation is:
To determine how many milliliters (mL) of voriconazole to administer, we first need to convert the client’s weight from pounds to kilograms, as the dosage is specified in mg/kg. The conversion factor is that 1 kg equals approximately 2.2 lb.
Step 1: Convert weight from pounds to kilograms.
The client weighs 127 lb.
[
\text{Weight in kg} = \frac{127 \text{ lb}}{2.2 \text{ lb/kg}} \approx 57.73 \text{ kg}
]
Step 2: Calculate the required dosage in mg.
The prescribed dosage is 6 mg/kg.
[
\text{Total dosage} = 6 \text{ mg/kg} \times 57.73 \text{ kg} \approx 346.38 \text{ mg}
]
Step 3: Determine the volume in mL of voriconazole to administer.
The available concentration of voriconazole is 5 mg/mL. To find out how many mL correspond to the calculated dose of 346.38 mg, we use the formula:
[
\text{Volume (mL)} = \frac{\text{Total dosage (mg)}}{\text{Concentration (mg/mL)}}
]
Substituting the known values:
[
\text{Volume (mL)} = \frac{346.38 \text{ mg}}{5 \text{ mg/mL}} \approx 69.276 \text{ mL}
]
Step 4: Round to the nearest whole number.
Rounding 69.276 to the nearest whole number gives us:
[
\text{Final Volume} = 69 \text{ mL}
]
Conclusion:
The nurse should administer 69 mL of voriconazole. This calculation illustrates the importance of weight conversion and proper dosage calculations in nursing, ensuring that medication is administered safely and effectively based on patient-specific parameters. This step-by-step approach helps prevent errors in medication dosing, especially in critical care settings where precision is vital.