Calculate weight-based medication dosages for common drugs. Covers paediatric and adult dosing for pain relief, antibiotics, antimalarials, and more.
Correct medication dosing is critical for treatment effectiveness and safety. Under-dosing can lead to treatment failure (especially with antibiotics, contributing to antimicrobial resistance), while overdosing can cause serious side effects or toxicity. This is particularly important in Africa where access to healthcare professionals may be limited in rural areas.
Weight-based dosing (mg per kg of body weight) is the standard approach for most medications, especially in paediatrics. Children are NOT simply "small adults" — their metabolism, organ function, and drug clearance differ significantly from adults. A child's dose should always be calculated based on their actual weight, not estimated or guessed.
In many African countries, over-the-counter medications are widely available from pharmacies and patent medicine stores. Common drugs like paracetamol, ibuprofen, antimalarials (Coartem/ACTs), and antibiotics are frequently self-administered. While self-medication is sometimes necessary due to healthcare access limitations, knowing the correct dosage is crucial for safety.
This calculator provides general dosing guidelines based on widely accepted medical references. However, individual factors like kidney function, liver disease, pregnancy, breastfeeding, and drug interactions can significantly alter the appropriate dose. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider when possible, and always complete the full course of antibiotics even if you feel better.
It depends on the medication. Some adult formulations (like paracetamol and ibuprofen) can be given to children at weight-appropriate doses, but the tablet strengths are usually too high. Use paediatric formulations (syrups/suspensions) for children. NEVER give aspirin to children under 16 (risk of Reye's syndrome). Some antibiotics also have different paediatric formulations.
Take the missed dose as soon as you remember, unless it's almost time for your next dose. Never take a double dose to make up for a missed one. For antibiotics, try to maintain regular intervals. If you miss multiple doses, contact your healthcare provider for guidance on whether to restart or continue the course.
WHO recommends preventive deworming every 6-12 months for school-age children (5-15 years) in areas where intestinal worm prevalence exceeds 20%. Sub-Saharan Africa has some of the highest worm burden globally. Many countries run mass drug administration (MDA) programmes through schools. At home, mebendazole 500mg or albendazole 400mg as a single dose is standard treatment. Children under 2 should NOT be dewormed without a doctor's advice.
Yes. Cotrimoxazole (Septrin, Bactrim) is widely available at pharmacies and patent medicine stores across Africa without a prescription. It is heavily used for UTIs, respiratory infections, and childhood diarrhoea. Importantly, it is also used as daily prophylaxis for HIV-positive patients and children exposed to HIV, under national ART guidelines in Kenya, Nigeria, Uganda, Tanzania, and most other African countries.
ORS replaces fluids and electrolytes lost during diarrhoea. Zinc supplements, given alongside ORS, have been shown in clinical trials to reduce the duration of diarrhoea by up to 25% and severity by up to 40%. Zinc also helps restore gut lining integrity. WHO and UNICEF strongly recommend the combination for children under 5 in developing countries. Zinc alone does not treat dehydration — both are needed together.
Dosage tools are high-risk, so the added layer pushes verification, age/weight checks, formulation awareness, and professional confirmation before use.
This app now has its own benchmarked improvement layer, dashboard handoff, email-gated PDF plan, and a route into the Clinical safety checklist workflow.
Medscape and Epocrates: Medication tools need age, weight, formulation, interaction, and professional-check gates.
Implemented here: Added stricter workflow copy, save/PDF actions, and a medication-verification benchmark block.