A Stability Indicating Proton NMR Spectroscopic Assay Method for Succinylcholine Chloride Injections

Abstract

A simple, accurate, and specific 1H-NMR spectroscopic method is presented for the assay of succinylcholine chloride injections. After freeze-drying the sample solution, a mixture of the residue with acetamide, serving as the internal standard, is dissolved in deuterium oxide, and the spectrum of the solution is recorded. The quantity of drug in the dosage form is calculated from the integral values for the resonance signals at ca. 2.01 ppm (acetamide) and ca. 3.27 ppm (succinylcholine chloride). The mean .+-. SD recovery value from synthetic formulations was 99.93 .+-. 0.60% (n = 10), with a corresponding CV of 0.60%. Assay values for a group of 10 commercial samples ranged from 86.1 to 100.7 (mean = 98.01)% of declared. Injection additives such as methyl paraben and benzyl alcohol did not interfere with the assays. The proposed method will also permit the simultaneous monitoring of the hydrolytic degradation of succinylcholine to its ester components.