Clinical pharmacokinetics worksheet with answers

Free printable Clinical pharmacokinetics worksheet: 6 problems from easy to exam level, with an answer key. Print it or save it as a PDF.

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1.Easy
Vd = 0.7 L/kgC = 25 mg/LLD = ?97 kg

Practice exercise (made-up values, not clinical guidance). A patient who weighs 97 kg needs a loading dose of vancomycin to reach a level of 25 mg/L straight away. The volume of distribution is 0.7 L/kg. Find the loading dose LD in mg.

97 kgVd = 0.7 L/kgC = 25 mg/L
LD = mg
2.Easy
0.1110100t (h)C (mg/L)10 mg/L12 hC = ?

Practice exercise (made-up values, not clinical guidance). Just after an IV dose, the tobramycin level is 10 mg/L. The half-life is 3 h, and the drug is eliminated by first-order kinetics. What is the level C 12 h later?

C₀ = 10 mg/Lt½ = 3 ht = 12 h
C = mg/L
3.Medium
110t (h)C (mg/L)C₀ = 8 mg/Lt½ = 2.5 hC₀/2

Practice exercise (made-up values, not clinical guidance). A patient receives an IV bolus of 190 mg of tobramycin. The level back-extrapolated to time zero is 8 mg/L and the half-life is 2.5 h. Find the clearance CL in L/h.

D = 190 mgC₀ = 8 mg/Lt½ = 2.5 h
CL = L/h
4.Medium
Vd = 0.5 L/kgC = 12 mg/LLD = ? mg77 kg · S = 0.8 · F = 1

Practice exercise (made-up values, not clinical guidance). A 77 kg patient is to be loaded intravenously with aminophylline to reach a theophylline level of 12 mg/L. The volume of distribution is 0.5 L/kg and the salt factor is S = 0.8. Find the loading dose LD of aminophylline in mg.

77 kgVd = 0.5 L/kgC = 12 mg/LS = 0.8
LD = mg
5.Hard
t (h)C (mg/L)Css​13 hC = ?

Practice exercise (made-up values, not clinical guidance). A vancomycin infusion runs at 75 mg/h with no loading dose. The patient's clearance is 3 L/h and the half-life is 6 h. What is the level C after 13 h?

R = 75 mg/hCL = 3 L/ht½ = 6 ht = 13 h
C = mg/L
6.Hard
Vd = 7 L/kg0.5 → 1 mcg/LLD = ? mcg59 kg · S = 1 · F = 0.7

Practice exercise (made-up values, not clinical guidance). A 59 kg patient has a digoxin level of 0.5 mcg/L; the target is 1 mcg/L. The volume of distribution is 7 L/kg and the tablets have F = 0.7. What extra loading dose LD raises the level to the target?

59 kgVd = 7 L/kgC = 0.5 → 1 mcg/LF = 0.7
LD = mcg

Answer key

  1. 1. LD = 1697 mg
  2. 2. C = 0.625 mg/L
  3. 3. CL = 6.585 L/h
  4. 4. LD = 577.5 mg
  5. 5. C = 19.43 mg/L
  6. 6. LD = 295 mcg

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