Simultaneous quantification of cefpirome and cetirizine or levocetirizine in pharmaceutical formulations and human plasma by RP-HPLC

A rapid and sensitive high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) assay for the simultaneous determination and quantification of cefpirome and cetirizine or cefpirome and levocetirizine in pharmaceutical formulations and human plasma without changing the chromatographic conditions is described. Chromatographic separations were performed on a prepacked Nucleosil 120, C-18 (5 mu m, 12.5 +/- 0.46 mm) column using CH3CN: H2O (75: 25, v/v) as a mobile phase at a flow rate of 1 mL/min while UV detection was performed at 232 nm for monitoring the effluent. A number of other brands of C-18 columns were also employed which had a significant effect on the separation. The method has been validated over the concentration range of 0.5-50 mu g/mL (r (2) > 0.999). The limit of detection (LOD) and quantification (LOQ) for cefpirome and levocetirzine in pharmaceutical formulations and serum were in the range 0.24-1.31 mu g/mL. Analytical recovery from human plasma was >98%, and the within and between-day relative standard deviation was <3.1%. The small sample volume and simplicity of preparation make this method suitable for use in pharmaceutical industries, drug research centers, clinical laboratories, and forensic medical centers.