Pediatric Body Weight Estimation

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Pediatric Body Weight Estimation

• Pediatric drug dosing relies heavily on body weight due to weight-based dosage formulas.
• However,  it is often difficult to obtain body weight during resuscitation.
• In addition, parents often readily recall their children's ages instead of weights.
• To facilitate quick conversions and improve dosing accuracy, the following simple mnemonic can be used, in which, 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 years old, correspond to 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 kilograms, respectively.
• For example, a 1-year-old  weighs 10 kg, a 3-year-old weighs 15 kg,
• First, count the ages: 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 years old, then, count the corresponding weights: 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 kilograms, respectively.

In conclusion, for children requiring weight-based resuscitative measures, this simple finger-counting method allows for rapid estimation of  body weights for specific ages in pediatrics.