A client needs to rapidly achieve a therapeutic plasma drug concentration of a medication.

A loading or priming dose rapidly establishes a therapeutic plasma drug level. It can be calculated by multiplying the volume of distribution by the desired plasma drug concentration. A maintenance dose maintains a therapeutic level after the loading dose. It takes five drug half-lives to achieve steady state if no loading dose is given. Choice 3 is similar to a maintenance dose. Intravenous administration provides excellent drug bioavailability, but one dose will not achieve a therapeutic plasma level.Pharmacological Therapies