Question

A 55 lb child was ordered for ibuprofen 300mg every 6 hours as needed for pain. Is this a safe dose (standard is 5-10mg/kg/dose)? What is the maximum dose that this child should receive per dose in mg and mLs?

Answer 1

Here,

- Ordered dose = 300 mg

- Standard dose = 5-10mg/kg/dose

Weight of the patient is given in pounds. So we have to convert it into kilograms.

It is known that,

1 lb is equal to 0.453592 kg.

So, 55 lb = 0.453592 × 55

= 24.9475 kg

Now,

- patient's weight = 24.94 kg.

Standard dose given is 5-10 mg/kg/dose.

It means that fot every kg of patient's weight requires 5-10 mg of drugs in each dose.

So , the minimum drug that is safe for the patient can be calculated by multiplying 5 mg with the patients weight.

Minimum safe amount of drug = 5 × 24.94

= 124.7 mg

Maximum amount that is safe for patient can be calculated by multiplying 10 mg with the patient's weight.

Maximum amount of drug can be given,

= 10 × 24.94

= 249.4 mg

So, from the above calculations we can see that the range of patient's needed and safe amount of drug per each dose can be 124.7 - 249.4 mg.

But in the given question, the patient is ordered to take 300 mg per dose. It is above the range of 124.7 - 249.7 mg.

therefore, we can say that 3000 mg is not safe for the patient. It can be considered as overdose.

Maximum drug can be given per dose in this case is 249.4 mg.

​​​​