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1. Normal saline contains 154 mEq/L. Your patient required 1.5 L of normal salin

ID: 143479 • Letter: 1

Question

1. Normal saline contains 154 mEq/L. Your patient required 1.5 L of normal saline. How many grams of NaCl did your patient receive? (MW of NaCl- 58.4 g/mol) a) 6.0 g NaCl b) 6.7 g NaCl c) 9.0 g NaCl d) 13.5 g NaCl 2. As a general rule of thumb, 10 mEq of potassium will raise a patient's serum potassium level by 0.1. If your patient has a serum potassium level of 3.2 (normal is 3.5), how many milligrams of KCl must you give to rectify your patient's serum potassium? (MW of KCI-74.5 g/mol) Hint: How many mEq will it take to increase the patient's serum potassium from 3.2 to 3.5? a) 22 mg KCI b) 1118 mg KCl c) 1490 mg KCl d) 2235 mg KCI

Explanation / Answer

ANSWER 1) 13.5 gram NaCl

Explanation

Normal saline contains = 154mEq/Litre or 154 milli Mole

1.5Litre of saline given to patient.

Molecular weight of NaCl = 58.4 g/mol

Grams of NaCl the patient received = No. of Grams of Nacl in 1.5litre

NO. of grams of NaCl in 1 litre Normal saline = 154 milli mole X 58.4 g/mol

                                                                        = .154 x 58.4g/ mol

                                                                         = 9 gm

No. of Grams of NaCl in 1.5litre = 1.5 x 9

                        ANSWER = 13.5 grams

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ANSWER 2) d-2235 mg KCL

EXPLANATION

10mEq of potassium will raise a patient’s serum by 0.1

Patients serum level =3.2

Normal level = 3.5

Serum needs to be raised by = 3.5 - 3.2 =0.3

How much potassium will be needed to raise 0.3 serum = 10mEq X 3= 30 mEq

Given Molecular weight of KCl=74.5g/mol

No. of milligrams of KCl required = 30mEq X 74.5g/mol

                                                       = 30 mM X 74.5 g/mol

                                  Answer       = 2235 mg KCL