An elderly patient who has depression is ordered


An elderly patient who has
depression is ordered Aventyl
(nortriptyline HCI) 25 mg po tid. The
label reads Aventyl Oral Solution 10
mg/5 mL. How many mL will you
administer.


The physician gives orders to infuse 1 L
of lactated Ringer’s in 15 hours.
Calculate the flow rate in milliliters per
hour.


The prescriber ordered 200 milligrams
po b.i.d. of indomethacin (Indocin), an
anti-inflammatory drug used in the
treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. The
capsules are labeled 50 mg. How many
capsules equal the prescribed dosage?

IV Rate
•
Always check the order before beginning
calculations!
•
Electronic infusion devices always regulate in
mL/hr !
•
Also, With microgtt tubing, gtt/min is equal to mL/hr
•
Formula:
Total volume (mL) = TV = mL/hr
Total Time (hr) TT
•
Round your answers to the nearest whole number.

Example

The physician order: Administer
D5NS 1500 mL every 24 hours via
continuous IV infusion.
 How many mL/hr should be
administered?


The physician order is to administer 50
mL of fluid over 10 minutes via the
patient’s IV.
 How should the infusion controller be set?

THE MAGIC FORMULA:
The Drops per Minute Formula

V
1 X
V
2
____________
=
gtts/min
ttm

Example

The physician has ordered 1000 mL
of D5W to run for 8 hours. The
administration set is 20 gtts/mL.
How many drops per minute should
the patient receive?

Sample problems

Order: Ancef 1 g in 100 mL of D5W
IVPB to be infused over 45 minutes
by microdrop tubing.
 Calculate the gtts/min


The physician orders 1000 mL lactated
Ringer’s to infuse at 125 mL/h for a
postoperative patient. Tubing drop
factor is 20 gtt/mL. Calculate the flow
rate in drops per minute.