Should the 0.045NS in D5 0.045 NS be listed as D5 0.45 NS?

[clucito01]

I just received my clinical assignment for tomorrow and part of our clinical packet (medications and pathophysiology) has to be completed when we arrive the morning of clinicals and one of the meds listed for my patient is shown as: D5 0.045 NS + 20KCL...I've never seen D5 0.045 before. I've only seen D5 0.45...could this have just been an error on my clinical instructor's part when she was entering the information into the Excel spreadsheet? My med book doesn't list a thing about it and I'm not finding much online about it either. The only reason I'm on here asking instead of calling my clinical instructor is because my cell phone is being repaired and won't be ready for pickup for over an hour!

Oh and can anyone recommend a good drug guide and diagnotic/lab reference book? I have Davis' 2011 drug guide and Lippincott's 2012 drug guide and to be honest I'm not too impressed by either! And my school had us get Mosby's Diagnostic and Laboratory Test Reference (10th edition) with our med-surg book and that one is even worse!

Thanks in advance for any help/suggestions! :)

[nurseprnRN, BSN, RN]

it's an error. it is, indeed, 0.45ns, sometimes also called "half normal saline." normal saline is 0.9%.

the best lab ref i can recommend is joyce lefever kee's classic "laboratory and diagnostic tests with nursing implications." she has a gift for explaining those "nursing implications," and you'll thank me when you take nclex and they ask you lab/diagnostic-related questions.

[iluvhrts]

There is also D5 0.45NS c 20kcl most likely a DKA or diabetic pt on q 1 h accuchecks for maintenance fluids.