Formula sheets, the key method steps for every topic and 6 practice problems, with full solutions at the back.
Which signs suggest hypoglycaemia in a young child with diabetes?
A 7-year-old has had morning headaches and vomiting for several weeks, now with clumsiness. What should the nurse suspect?
Practice exercise (made-up values, not clinical guidance). A practice protocol calls for a heparin bolus of 70 units/kg for a patient who weighs 100 kg. The vial contains 1 000 units/mL. What volume V do you draw up? Round to one decimal place.
Practice exercise (made-up values, not clinical guidance). A bag contains dobutamine 250 mg in 250 mL. The order is 10 mcg/kg/min for a patient who weighs 94 kg. At what rate R do you set the pump, in mL/h? Round to one decimal place.
Practice exercise (made-up values, not clinical guidance). The record shows a patient's intake and output for one 12-hour shift. The patient weighs 103 kg. Find the average urine output U in mL/kg/h. Round to two decimal places.
Practice exercise (made-up values, not clinical guidance). A 1000 mL bag runs by pump at 100 mL/h. At 12:30, 650 mL have already been infused. How many hours t until the bag is empty? Round to one decimal place.
Answer: A · Shakiness, sweating, pallor and a sudden change in behaviour
Hypoglycaemia causes adrenergic signs (shaking, sweating, pallor, fast heart rate) and neuroglycopenic signs (irritability, confusion, unusual behaviour, drowsiness). Young children may not recognise or report it.
Answer: A · A brain tumour with raised intracranial pressure
Early-morning headache and vomiting suggest raised intracranial pressure, and clumsiness suggests a lesion in the cerebellum, a common site in children. Urgent neuroimaging is needed.
Answer: V = 7 mL
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.
Answer: R = 56.4 mL/h
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.
Answer: U = 0.85 mL/kg/h
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.
Answer: t = 3.5 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.
That is about 3 h 30 min, so the bag runs out at about 16:00.
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