In: Nursing
A patient who has been on a high protriptyline HCl imipramine for several years is now discontinuing the drug. To avoid discontinuation symptoms, her prescriber has given the following taper instruction: “Decrease by 10 mg/day each week until discontinued”. The patient’s current dosage is 60 mg/day. How many 10-mg tablets will be required for the patient to complete the taper?
(Will thumbs up)
Answer : 105 tablets
Prescriber taper instruction is decrease 10 mg/day each week until discontinued.
As the patient has been receiving high protriptyline HCl impramine for several years at 60 mg/day, she can start taper the medication from the next day morning as 50 mg/ day and taper 10 mg per day in every week ,after completion of fifth week patient can stop the medication.
(Consider 50 mg/day medication contains 5 tablet of 10 mg ( =5 tablet), accordingly 40 mg/day medication contains 4 tablet, 30 mg/day medication contains 3 tablet, 20 mg/day medication contains 2 tablet and 10 mg/day medication contains 1 tablet.)
So (50 mg tablet/day for first week) ie 5 tablet 7 days = 35 tablets
(40 mg tablet/day for second week) ie 4 tablet 7 days = 28 tablets
(30 mg tablet/day for third week) ie 3 tablet 7 days = 21 tablets
(20 mg tablet/day for fourth week) ie 2 tablet 7 days = 14 tablets
(10 mg tablet/day for fifth week) ie 1 tablet 7 days = 7 tablets
Total 10-mg tablets will be required to complete the taper = (35 tablet + 28 tablet + 21 tablet +14 tablet + 7 tablet)
Total 10-mg tablets will be required to complete the taper = 105 tablets