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Why This Matters for Nursing: Healthcare uses the metric system exclusively. Medications are in milligrams (mg), IV fluids in milliliters (mL), and patient weights in kilograms (kg). Knowing metric prefixes lets you convert instantly.
The metric system is based on powers of 10. Each prefix changes the base unit by a factor of 10, 100, or 1,000.
| Measurement | Base Unit | Symbol |
|---|---|---|
| Length | meter | m |
| Volume | liter | L |
| Mass/Weight | gram | g |
| Prefix | Symbol | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| kilo- | k | 1,000 | 1 kg = 1,000 g |
| (base) | - | 1 | meter, gram, liter |
| centi- | c | 1/100 (0.01) | 1 cm = 0.01 m |
| milli- | m | 1/1,000 (0.001) | 1 mg = 0.001 g |
| micro- | mcg or ΞΌ | 1/1,000,000 | 1 mcg = 0.000001 g |
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