Nursing IV Infusion Medication Question:
An antibiotic has a flow rate of 30ml over 20 minutes by infusion pump. Given: 3000ml of Potassium chloride over 24 hours. Drop Factor is 10 gtts/ml. What is the IV rate in gtts/min?
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Potassium Chloride:
Potassium chloride (KCl) is a chemical compound consisting of potassium and chloride ions. It is a common salt that is often used in a variety of applications, such as in fertilizers, food additives, and medical treatments.
In terms of its medical uses, potassium chloride can be used to treat low potassium levels in the blood (hypokalemia) and to prevent or treat potassium depletion caused by certain medications or medical conditions. It may also be used as a supplement in the intravenous fluids given to patients in hospitals.
Explanation:
To find the IV rate in gtts/min, we need to convert the flow rate of the antibiotic in ml/min and then use it to calculate the IV rate of the Potassium chloride.
Flow rate of antibiotic = 30 ml/20 minutes = 1.5 ml/min
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Volume of Potassium chloride to be infused in 24 hours = 3000 ml
We can find the infusion rate of Potassium chloride in ml/hour using the following formula:
Infusion rate (ml/hour) = Total volume to be infused (ml) / Time for infusion (hours)
Explanation:
As the time given is in hours, we need to convert the flow rate of antibiotic from ml/min to ml/hour:
1.5 ml/min x 60 min/hour = 90 ml/hour
Final answer
Using the formula, we get:
Infusion rate of Potassium chloride = 3000 ml / 24 hours = 125 ml/hour
Now, we can calculate the IV rate in gtts/min using the following formula:
• IV rate (gtts/min) = Infusion rate (ml/hour) x Drop factor / 60
Given, the drop factor is 10 gtts/ml.
So, IV rate = 125 ml/hour x 10 gtts/ml / 60 = 20.83 gtts/min (rounded to 2 decimal places)
Therefore, the IV rate of Potassium chloride is 20.83 gtts/min.