IV Flow Rate Calculator
This calculator helps you determine the correct intravenous (IV) fluid flow rate. Accurate calculation of IV flow rates is crucial for ensuring patients receive the appropriate amount of medication or fluid over a specific period. Incorrect rates can lead to under-infusion (not enough fluid, potentially delaying treatment) or over-infusion (too much fluid, which can cause fluid overload or adverse drug reactions).
The calculation is based on three key pieces of information:
- Volume to be Infused (mL): The total amount of fluid or medication that needs to be administered.
- Drip Factor (gtts/mL): This is a constant specific to the administration set you are using. It represents how many drops make up 1 milliliter. Common drip factors are 10 gtts/mL, 15 gtts/mL, 20 gtts/mL, and 60 gtts/mL (for burette sets).
- Time (hours): The total duration over which the infusion should be completed.
The formula used is:
Flow Rate (gtts/min) = (Volume to be Infused (mL) × Drip Factor (gtts/mL)) / Time (minutes)
Since the time is often given in hours, we first convert it to minutes by multiplying by 60.
function calculateFlowRate() {
var volume = parseFloat(document.getElementById("volume").value);
var dripFactor = parseFloat(document.getElementById("dripFactor").value);
var timeHours = parseFloat(document.getElementById("timeHours").value);
var resultDiv = document.getElementById("result");
resultDiv.innerHTML = ""; // Clear previous results
if (isNaN(volume) || isNaN(dripFactor) || isNaN(timeHours)) {
resultDiv.innerHTML = "Please enter valid numbers for all fields.";
return;
}
if (volume <= 0 || dripFactor <= 0 || timeHours <= 0) {
resultDiv.innerHTML = "Please enter positive values for all fields.";
return;
}
var timeMinutes = timeHours * 60;
var flowRateGttsPerMin = (volume * dripFactor) / timeMinutes;
// Display the result, rounded to two decimal places
resultDiv.innerHTML = "
Result:
" +
"Flow Rate:
" + flowRateGttsPerMin.toFixed(2) + " gtts/min";
}
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