What factors affect a sufficient dose of furosemide?

Sufficient dose of furosemide depends on many factors, such as the method of drug administration, patient reaction to the drug and specific condition that is treated. The common oral dose of the drug is 20-80 milligrams twice daily. This may increase up to 600 milligrams a day, depending on the patient's reaction to the drug. Different administration methods such as continuous intravenous lines and intravenous or intramuscular injections require more frequent but lower doses. The required dose of furosemide for hypercalcaemia is 10-40 milligrams four times a day.

Furosemide is classified as a diuretic drug, which means it is used to increase urination and removal of salt and water from the system. The kidneys are body organs responsible for the production of urine. The kidneys usually filter out molecules of salt and water from the blood and combine them into a mixture to become urine. Components such as sodiums, chloride ions and water are filtered from the mixture so that the body is used again before exclusion as urine. The dose of furosemide prevents kidney from reabsorbing salt andwater, thus increasing the amount of urine produced.

The most visible factor that affects sufficient dose of furosemide is the patient's reaction to the drug. If the patient's condition does not improve after the initial dose, it may be increased by 20-40 milligrams per dose, which is usually given six to eight hours after the previous dose. The doses should only be increased according to the instructions of the healthcare professional.

Another important factor in determining the correct dose of furosemide is the way the drug is administered. Intravenus and intramuscular doses are administered in lower quantities than oral doses, but are administered more often. The average dose for intravenous or intramuscular administration is 10-20 milligrams of infunded for two minutes and repeated after two hours. When the drug is administered during continuous intravenous drip, the initial dose is 0.1 milligrams to 2.2 pounds (1 kg) of body weight, followed by a dose of 0.1 millionA gram of 2.2 pounds (1 kg) per hour, which can be doubled if necessary. These doses, albeit individually different, are likely to fall to the same extent as the oral dose during the day.