In: Nursing
A pharmacist needs to prepare 250-mg aspirin suppositories for a patient, and the dosage regimen is “1 q4-6h prn”. How many grams of aspirin would be needed for a 8-day supply of these suppositories according to this regimen?
Aspirin suppository is administered rectally and is mainly used to treat fever and relieve minor to moderate pain from conditions such as muscle aches, toothaches, menstrual cramps, arthritis, and headaches.
"1 q4-6h prn" means 1 suppository is given every 4 to 6 hours and the administration of medication is not scheduled instead, the prescription is taken as needed.
As per the prescription, for 24 hours the patient might require 4-6 suppositories. (24/4= 6 ; 24/6= 4). Which means the maximum number of suppository that the patient might require for 24 hours is 6.
This regimen is planned for 8 days. Hence, 48 aspirin suppositories will be required (6*8= 48) .
Here, 1 suppository contains 250 mg aspirin. So, to prepare 48 suppositories the pharmacist will require 12000 mg of aspirin (250*48=12000)
When we convert mg to g we get :12g. (NOTE : To convert mg to g, simply divide mg by 1000)
here, 12000/1000 = 12 g.
Answer :-
The pharmacist will require 12g of aspirin for a 8-day supply of these suppositories according to this regimen.