A Gas Chromatographic Method for the Quantitative Analysis of Some Urinary Metabolites of Chlorpromazine

Abstract

The procedure presented has been found applicable for the analysis of chlorpromazine, its demethylated forms, and the corresponding sulfoxides, present in urines of patients receiving this medication. Following sample preparation, analyses are run on an instrument equipped with a hydrogen flame detector and a two foot column packed with silanized Diatoport-S coated with 5% by weight SE-30. Based on the analyses of synthetic urines, 80% of the unoxidized species and 70% of the sulfoxides are recovered and detected after complete workup. Metabolites in concentrations as low as 0.6 mg/per liter can be detemined. The average standard deviation for the entire procedure is 15 per cent. The procedure is currently restricted to these six metabolites since the entire metabolic pattern for the drug is still uncertain.