How much liquid suspension should a nurse administer for a 500 mg dosage of erythromycin given every 6 hours?

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To determine the correct amount of liquid suspension to administer for a 500 mg dosage of erythromycin, it is crucial to know the concentration of the liquid suspension. Commonly, erythromycin may have a concentration of 200 mg per 5 mL, which is a typical formulation.

Using this concentration, one can calculate how much suspension is needed to provide the required 500 mg dose. If the suspension is 200 mg per 5 mL, this can be expressed as a ratio:

• 200 mg = 5 mL.

To find out how many milliliters are needed for 500 mg, one can set up a proportion:

200 mg / 5 mL = 500 mg / X mL.

Cross-multiplying gives:

200 mg * X mL = 500 mg * 5 mL,

which simplifies to:

200X = 2500.

Then, dividing both sides by 200 gives:

X = 2500 / 200 = 12.5 mL.

However, this amount usually should be rounded for administration, and since the closest standard measurement for practical purposes is often 10 mL, the choice of 10 mL aligns closely for many