mEq to mg conversion

[JohnS]

Originally Posted by Unregistered

i AM TRYING TO CONVERT MILLIEQUIVILANTS TO MILLIGRAMS. HOW IS THIS DONE?

You need the charge of the ion to convert equivalents to moles, and you need the molar mass to convert to grams.

Convert chloride to potassium chloride

Originally Posted by JohnS

Since potassium ionizes to K+ in water (single valence charge) 25 mEq = 25 mmol. The molar mass is 39.1 g/mol = 978 mg.

This matches the information I found at the RxList.com website for Micro-K® time release potassium chloride:

"Micro-K (potassium chloride extended-release) ® Extencaps® capsules and Micro-K (potassium chloride extended-release) ® 10 Extencaps® capsules are oral dosage forms of microencapsulated potassium chloride containing 600 and 750 mg, respectively, of potassium chloride USP equivalent to 8 and 10 mEq of potassium."

I also discovered the mEq is "molar equivalent" rather than "medical equivalent", which makes the general concept easier to understand, which is fabulous . . .

Fabulous!

[Mrs X]

Originally Posted by Unregistered

This matches the information I found at the RxList.com website for Micro-K® time release potassium chloride:

"Micro-K (potassium chloride extended-release) ® Extencaps® capsules and Micro-K (potassium chloride extended-release) ® 10 Extencaps® capsules are oral dosage forms of microencapsulated potassium chloride containing 600 and 750 mg, respectively, of potassium chloride USP equivalent to 8 and 10 mEq of potassium."

I also discovered the mEq is "molar equivalent" rather than "medical equivalent", which makes the general concept easier to understand, which is fabulous . . .

Fabulous!

Note 1: mEq is "milli equivalent", which is one thousandth of an equivalent. An "equivalent" can be the same as a mole, but it does depend on the nature of what is being examined. For potassium (K) 1 equivalent = 1 mole.

Note 2: the website mentioned above: http://www.rxlist.com/micro-k-drug.htm

Looking to convert 595mg K gluconate to mEq of KCl

[JohnS]

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Looking to convert 595mg K gluconate to mEq of KCl

On what basis for equivalence since potassium gluconate ISN'T potassium chloride?

Perhaps what someone needs to know here is that MOLES are like PAIRS or DOZENS. There are 2 like items in a pair (of shoes, e.g.); 12 like items in a dozen (eggs, e.g.) and 6.022 X 10^23 like items in a mole (of atoms or molecules, e.g.).

Trying to convert a milliequivalent of potassium gluconate into milligrams of potassium chloride "doesn't compute". It's like subtracting five shoes and a banana from ten pairs of shoes.

It is easy enough to convert a milliequivalent of potassium chloride (which K-lyte is) to milligrams of potassium chloride (of, say, another brand). However, it is IMPOSSIBLE to convert a milliequivalent of potassium chloride to milligrams of an UNKNOWN potassium salt.

Dr. Sheldon Cooper (and, by the way, I'm NOT a chemist; I'm a theoretical physicist).

74.5 mg of Potassium Chloride = 1 mmol or 1mEq of Potassium
Got this information from my hospital pharmacy manual !

For those of you asking on this thread for medical reasons, I would recommend (as a doctor):
a) ask the manufacturer directly: how many mEq per dose (tablet/capsule/whatever) in this particular product, and then
b) discuss directly with your doctor - I'd like to switch from X to Y and I've found out this information about dosing. Is this safe?

....all BEFORE switching.

como covierto 2.1 mEq a mg/dl