The physician prescribes the Low Dose Heparin Protocol. The Protocol indicates that the patient should receive an initial bolus of 60 units per kilogram followed by a continuous IV drip of 10 units per kilogram per hour. The patient weighs 198 pounds. Heparin comes in a vial with 10,000 units in 10 ml and in a bag with 25,000 units in 250ml of ½ normal saline.
How many ml of Heparin will the nurse administer for the initial bolus? 5.4ml
By dimensional analysis:
The final desired label you want is
mL. Here is the set up:
60units / 1kg (dose desired) X 10mL / 10,000units (dose on hand--the vial) X 198lb (weight of patient) X 1kg / 2.2lb (conversion factor) = 5.4mL (after doing math and factoring out duplicated labels in numerators and denominators)
How fast will the nurse set the pump for the continuous IV drip of Heparin?
By dimensional analysis:
The final desired label you want is
mL.
10units / 1kg (dose desired) X 250mL / 25,000units (dose on hand--IV bag) X 198lbs (weight of patient) X 1kg / 2.2lb (conversion factor) = 9mL
This will be 900units of heparin per hour. The infusion pumps will be set at 9mL per hour. To double check this divide the 25,000units by 250cc to get 100units of heparin per mL of solution. If the patient weighs 198lbs, or 90kg (198 divided by 2.2) then 90kg at 10unit per kg per is 900units per hour.
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