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1Formulas and methods
Pediatric nursing
Method
Note the child’s age first: it sets the normal vital signs, the milestones and the right pain scale.
Assess airway, breathing and circulation, remembering that children compensate and then deteriorate fast.
Match the action to the development stage and involve the family.
Check that the answer is safe for a child: weight-based, no aspirin in viral illness, no codeine under 12.
Pediatric & critical-care dosing
Daily dose
mg/day = mg/kg/day × weight (kg)
Doses per day
number = 24 h / dosing interval (h)
Pounds to kilograms
kg = lb / 2.2
Infusion concentration
units/mL = units in bag / bag volume
Pump rate
mL/h = dose per hour / concentration
Titrated drip
mL/h = mcg/kg/min × kg × 60 / (mcg/mL)
Dose from pump rate
mcg/kg/min = mL/h × (mcg/mL) / (60 × kg)
Units
1 mg = 1000 mcg
IV fluids & fluid balance
Holliday–Segar per hour
4 mL/kg (first 10 kg) + 2 mL/kg (next 10 kg) + 1 mL/kg (each kg above 20)
Holliday–Segar per day
100 / 50 / 20 mL/kg for the same bands
Fluid balance
intake − output
Ice chips
count as half their volume
Urine output
mL/kg/h = mL / (kg × h)
Infusion time
time (h) = volume left (mL) / rate (mL/h)
Volume infused
mL = rate × time
2Practice problems
1.Pediatric nursingMedium
Which treatment is commonly used for a child with moderate croup?
AChest physiotherapy
BA course of oral antibiotics such as amoxicillin for 5 to 7 days
CA cough suppressant
DA single dose of an oral corticosteroid such as dexamethasone
2.Pediatric nursingHard
A 5-year-old insists that a tall, thin glass holds more juice than a short, wide glass, although he saw the same amount poured into each. What explains this?
AHe has a visual problem and needs an eye examination
BHe is showing abstract reasoning typical of the formal operational stage
CHe has not yet developed conservation, which is typical of the preoperational stage
DIt is a sign of intellectual disability that needs assessment
3.Pediatric & critical-care dosingMedium
Practice exercise (made-up values, not clinical guidance). A bag contains 25 000 units of heparin in 250 mL. The order is 20 units/kg/h for a patient who weighs 76 kg. At what rate R do you set the pump, in mL/h? Round to one decimal place.
25 000 units/250 mL20 units/kg/h76 kg
R = mL/h
4.Pediatric & critical-care dosingHard
Practice exercise (made-up values, not clinical guidance). A dobutamine infusion of 250 mg in 250 mL runs at 16 mL/h. The patient weighs 107 kg. What dose D in mcg/kg/min is the patient receiving? Round to one decimal place.
250 mg/250 mL16 mL/h107 kg
D = mcg/kg/min
5.IV fluids & fluid balanceMedium
Practice exercise (made-up values, not clinical guidance). The record shows a patient's intake and output for one 8-hour shift. The IV infusion ran at the rate shown for the whole shift. Find the total intake I in mL. Count ice chips as half their volume.
water: 120 mLtea: 240 mLice chips: 120 mLIV infusion: 100 mL/h × 8 hIV antibiotic: 2 × 100 mL
I = mL
6.IV fluids & fluid balanceHard
Practice exercise (made-up values, not clinical guidance). A 1000 mL bag runs by pump at 80 mL/h. At 11:00, 800 mL have already been infused. How many hours t until the bag is empty? Round to one decimal place.
1000 mL800 mL infused80 mL/h
t = h
3Solutions
1.Pediatric nursing
Answer: D · A single dose of an oral corticosteroid such as dexamethasone
Why this is the answer
Corticosteroids reduce airway swelling in croup. Nebulised epinephrine is added for severe stridor at rest. Croup is viral, so antibiotics do not help.
Answer
D · A single dose of an oral corticosteroid such as dexamethasone
2.Pediatric nursing
Answer: C · He has not yet developed conservation, which is typical of the preoperational stage
Why this is the answer
Preoperational children focus on one feature, such as height, and cannot yet understand that the amount stays the same when the shape changes. Conservation develops in the concrete operational stage, from about 7 years.
Answer
C · He has not yet developed conservation, which is typical of the preoperational stage
3.Pediatric & critical-care dosing
Answer: R = 15.2 mL/h
Heparin and insulin infusions: concentration = units in the bag/bag volume (units/mL). Pump rate (mL/h) = units per hour/concentration, and units per hour = mL/h × concentration. For a weight-based order, units/h = units/kg/h × weight first. A bolus volume = units needed/vial strength. The numbers are for practice only; at the bedside always follow local protocols and have high-risk doses double-checked.
Units per hour
20·76 = 1 520 units/h
Concentration
25 000/250 = 100 units/mL
Pump rate
R = 1520/100 = 15.2 mL/h
Answer
R = 15.2 mL/h
4.Pediatric & critical-care dosing
Answer: D = 2.5 mcg/kg/min
Titrated drips: first find the concentration in mcg/mL (mg × 1000/mL). For a weight-based order, mcg/min = mcg/kg/min × weight. Then mL/h = mcg/min × 60/concentration. Working backwards, mcg/kg/min = mL/h × concentration/(60 × weight). The numbers are for practice only; at the bedside always follow local protocols and have high-risk doses double-checked.
Concentration
250 000/250 = 1000 mcg/mL
Micrograms per minute
16·1000 = 16000 mcg/h
16000/60 = 266.7 mcg/min
Per kilogram
D = 266.7/107 = 2.492 ≈ 2.5 mcg/kg/min
Answer
D = 2.5 mcg/kg/min
5.IV fluids & fluid balance
Answer: I = 1420 mL
Intake and output: intake counts everything that goes in (oral fluids, IV infusions, IV medications and flushes, tube feeds); ice chips count as half their volume. Output counts urine, drains, vomit and other losses. Balance = total intake − total output; a negative balance is a net loss. The numbers are for practice only; at the bedside always follow local protocols and have high-risk doses double-checked.
Add the intake
oral: 120 + 240 = 360 mL
ice chips: 120/2 = 60 mL
IV infusion: 100·8 = 800 mL
IV antibiotic: 2·100 = 200 mL
I = 1420 mL
Answer
I = 1420 mL
6.IV fluids & fluid balance
Answer: t = 2.5 h
Infusion time: time (h) = volume to infuse (mL)/rate (mL/h); use the volume still left in the bag, not the bag size. Volume infused = rate × time. Convert decimal hours to hours and minutes with the fraction × 60 (0.5 h = 30 min, not 50 min). The numbers are for practice only; at the bedside always follow local protocols and have high-risk doses double-checked.
Volume left
1000 − 800 = 200 mL
Time
t = 200/80 = 2.5 h
Answer
t = 2.5 h
That is about 2 h 30 min, so the bag runs out at about 13:30.