Drug Dosage Calculations Test: Comprehensive Guide for Nursing &
Healthcare Students
Answer the following exercises:
2. The following regimen for oral prednisone is prescribed for a patient: 50 mg/day × 10
days; 25 mg/day × 10 days; 12.5 mg/day × 10 days; and 5 mg/day × 10 weeks. How many
scored 25-mg tablets and how many 5-mg tablets should be dispensed to meet the
dosing requirements?
Given:
50 mg/day × 10 days
25 mg/day × 10 days
12.5 mg/day × 10 days
5 mg/day × 10 weeks.
Solution:
50 mg/day × 10 days = 500 mg
25 mg/day × 10 days = 250 mg
12.5 mg/day × 10 days = 125 mg
Total = 875 mg
875 𝑚𝑔
25 𝑚𝑔 𝑡𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒𝑡𝑠
= 35 tablets of 25 mg tablets should be dispensed to meet the dosing requirements.
5 mg/day × 10 weeks: 5 mg/day × (10 weeks × 7 days) = 350 mg
350 𝑚𝑔
5 𝑚𝑔 𝑡𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒𝑡𝑠
= 70 tablets of 5 mg tablets should be dispensed to meet the dosing requirements.
4. A fixed-dose combination product contains amlodipine besylate and atorvastatin
calcium (CADUET ) for the treatment of both hypertension and hypercholesterolemia. If a
physician starts a patient on a 5-mg/10-mg dose for 14 days and then raises the dose to
10 mg/20 mg, how many milligrams of each drug will the patient take during the first 30
days?
Given:
5 mg/10 mg dose for 14 days
10 mg/20 mg
Solution:
(5 mg × 14 days) + (10 mg × 16 days) = 70 + 160 = 230 mg of drug will the patient take during
30 days
(10 mg × 14 days) + (20 mg × 16 days) = 140 + 320 = 460 mg of drug will the patient take
during 30 days
5. A patient cuts 100-mg scored tablets to take his 50-mg prescribed daily dose. A
prescription for thirty 100-mg tablets costs $45, and a prescription for thirty 50-mg
tablets costs $40. The patient asked the pharmacist to weigh an uncut tablet on an
electronic balance into two “halves.” The uncut tablet was found to weigh 240 mg, and
the cut “halves” weighed 125 mg and 115 mg, respectively. (a) How much money did the
patient save on a monthly basis by dosing with half-tablets? (b) What was the percentage
error in the weight of the cut tablets com-
pared with “exact halves”?
Healthcare Students
Answer the following exercises:
2. The following regimen for oral prednisone is prescribed for a patient: 50 mg/day × 10
days; 25 mg/day × 10 days; 12.5 mg/day × 10 days; and 5 mg/day × 10 weeks. How many
scored 25-mg tablets and how many 5-mg tablets should be dispensed to meet the
dosing requirements?
Given:
50 mg/day × 10 days
25 mg/day × 10 days
12.5 mg/day × 10 days
5 mg/day × 10 weeks.
Solution:
50 mg/day × 10 days = 500 mg
25 mg/day × 10 days = 250 mg
12.5 mg/day × 10 days = 125 mg
Total = 875 mg
875 𝑚𝑔
25 𝑚𝑔 𝑡𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒𝑡𝑠
= 35 tablets of 25 mg tablets should be dispensed to meet the dosing requirements.
5 mg/day × 10 weeks: 5 mg/day × (10 weeks × 7 days) = 350 mg
350 𝑚𝑔
5 𝑚𝑔 𝑡𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒𝑡𝑠
= 70 tablets of 5 mg tablets should be dispensed to meet the dosing requirements.
4. A fixed-dose combination product contains amlodipine besylate and atorvastatin
calcium (CADUET ) for the treatment of both hypertension and hypercholesterolemia. If a
physician starts a patient on a 5-mg/10-mg dose for 14 days and then raises the dose to
10 mg/20 mg, how many milligrams of each drug will the patient take during the first 30
days?
Given:
5 mg/10 mg dose for 14 days
10 mg/20 mg
Solution:
(5 mg × 14 days) + (10 mg × 16 days) = 70 + 160 = 230 mg of drug will the patient take during
30 days
(10 mg × 14 days) + (20 mg × 16 days) = 140 + 320 = 460 mg of drug will the patient take
during 30 days
5. A patient cuts 100-mg scored tablets to take his 50-mg prescribed daily dose. A
prescription for thirty 100-mg tablets costs $45, and a prescription for thirty 50-mg
tablets costs $40. The patient asked the pharmacist to weigh an uncut tablet on an
electronic balance into two “halves.” The uncut tablet was found to weigh 240 mg, and
the cut “halves” weighed 125 mg and 115 mg, respectively. (a) How much money did the
patient save on a monthly basis by dosing with half-tablets? (b) What was the percentage
error in the weight of the cut tablets com-
pared with “exact halves”?
