Pediatric Dosage Calculation

Hello Class!!!!!!! Good luck in college. Our mom is nice.

From Logan Shaffer and Jordan Shaffer

How is Pediatric Dosage

Calculation Different than Adults?
There is no standard dose

All doses are based on a recommended

dosage based on:
Body weight in kilograms (for this dosage test)
Body Surface Area

Begin by Converting to Kilograms

All MD orders will be ordered as a dose
per kg
Convert the patients weight in lbs to kg by
dividing the weight in lbs by 2.2
Example:
50 lbs divide by 2.2 = 22.7272727272727
Round to tenths place = 22.7 kg

Now you try!

1. Patients weight 48 lbs
How many kg does the patient weigh?
Patient weight 13.9 lbs
How many kg does the patient weigh?

Write your answer:

The MD order
The MD order can be written in several
ways:

In a daily total to be divided in equal doses

Ex: 30mg/kg/day equally divided in three
doses
or
Per dose
Ex: 30mg/kg TID

Lets Try it!

Patients weight: 45 lbs
2. Give 30mg/kg/day equally divided in three
doses
How many mg per dose? How much is the
24 hr drug total?
3. Give 30mg/kg TID
How many mg per dose? How much is the
24 hr drug total?

Write your answers

Is the dose safe?

All pediatric dosages have a
recommended range in the drug guide
These ranges are typically based on a 24
hour total amount of a dosage in mg, mcg,
gm, etc.
Remember how to convert mcg to mg,
gram to mg etc.

Is the order safe?

A statement from the drug guide will be
provided on the dosage test
Ex: The drug guide states the recommended
safe dosage is 3-5 mg/kg/day to be given
in 2 divided doses

Lets try it!

4. MD order Sporanox (itraconazole) 40 mg
bid
Patients weight 47 lbs
Drug guide recommends 3-5mg/kg/day q12 hrs
Is the dose safe?

Write your answer

Supply
Pediatric medication is typically supplied in
liquid form
Some children can swallow pills or the
medication may only come in tablet form
Most of the dosage assessment questions
will consist of medication in liquid form, few
questions will be in tablet form

Remember.
Supply is expressed as a dosage amount per a
commonly used quantity
Example

250mg/5ml
100mg/ml
50mcg/1ml

This is different from the total amount of drug

dosage in the bottle

Calculate Liquid Medication

Dose desired
Dose on hand

quantity in ml

= volume to be administered

Lets try it!

5. MD order is to give 75 mg
Supply is 250mg/5ml
Calculate the amount to administer

Write your answer

Read a label
Some dosage
questions will require
you to read a drug
label

Mixing
directions:
Add 30 ml
of water
Mix
Vigorously
Discard
after 5
days

Zantac
(ranitidine)
Oral
suspension
25mg/5ml

Lets try it!

6. Using the medication label supplied, how
many milliliters should be administered
per dose if the MD order is 100 mg po qd?

Write your answer

Ok, so how do you round?

Look at it this way
If the calculated answer is <1 ml then round to
the hundredths place as this amount could be
easily administered in a 1 ml syringe
Example: If the answer was 0.75 ml, where
would you draw the solution to in this syringe?

What is the Answer is > 1 ml?

If the calculated dose is greater than 1 ml
then you round to the tenths place
Example- if the dose was 2.75 ml, using a
3 ml syringe you would need to round to
2.8ml, as 2.75ml can not be precisely
administered

Intravenous
Nothing new here.
Volume in ml x drop factor = gtt/min
Time in min

You are Ready!!! Lets put it all

together
7. The physician orders Kantrex
(kanamycin) oral suspension po 150
mg/kg/day in 2 divided doses.
Supply Kantrex 500mg/5ml.
Patients weight: 28 lbs
How many milliliters should be
administered per dose?

Write your answer

8. The physician orders Prostigmin

(neostigmine bromide) 8 mg q 4 hrs
The drug guide recommended dosage is
2-4 mg/kg/day in divided doses
Patients weight: 21 lbs
Is the physicians order safe?

Write your answer

Carefulsome may have patients

weight in kg already!
9. The physician orders Primacor (milrinone
lactate) 50 mcg IM stat.
Supply: 0.2mg/ml
Patients weight: 12 kg.
How many milliliters should be administered
per dose?

Write your answer

10. The physician orders Sustiva (efavirenz)

20mg/kg po q 12 hrs.
Supply: Sustiva 50 mg tablets
Patients weight: 11 lbs
How many tablets are to be administered per
dose?

Write your answer

11. The physician orders IV fluids as follows:

Infuse 1000ml of 0. 45% normal saline
solution in 10 hours IV.
Calculate the flow rate when the drop
factor is 10 drops per milliliters

Write your answer

You are ready to take the practice

test!