Determination of Bumetanide in Human Plasma by a Validated HPLC Method and Its Application to Single-dose Pharmacokinetics

A high-performance liquid chromatographic method was employed for the determination of bumetanide in human plasma. After addition of internal standard (IS, naproxen) and acidification of the plasma with 1 M hydrochloric acid, the drug and IS were extracted into dichloromethane. The organic phase was back-extracted into 1 M sodium bicarbonate solution and 50 of the aqueous phase was injected onto a reversed-phase C18 column with a mobile phase consisting of methanol: water: glacial acetic acid = 65 : 35 : 1. The samples were detected utilizing a fluorescence detector (excitation wavelength 235 nm, emission wavelength 405 nm). The method was specific and validated with a lower limit of 5 ng/mL. Intra- and inter-day precision and accuracy were acceptable for all quality control samples including the lower limit of quantification. The applicability of the method was demonstrated by analysis of plasma after oral administration of a single 2 mg dose to 24 healthy subjects. From the plasma bumetanide concentration vs. time curves, the mean AUC was and of ng/mL reached 1.2 hr after administration. The mean biological half-life of burnet ani de was hr. Based on the results, this simple and validated assay method could readily be used in any pharmacokinetic or bioequivalence studies using humans.