Comparison of UV and charged aerosol detection approach in pharmaceutical analysis of statins

CAD (charged aerosol detector) has recently become a new alternative detection system in HPLC. This detection approach was applied in a new HPLC method for the determination of three of the major statins used in clinical treatment—simvastatin, lovastatin and atorvastatin.The method was optimized and the influence of individual parameters on CAD response and sensitivity was carefully studied. Chromatography was performed on a Zorbax Eclipse XDB C18 (4.6 mm × 75 mm, 3.5 μm), using acetonitrile and formic acid 0.1% as mobile phase. The detection was performed using both CAD (20 pA range) and DAD (diode array detector—238 nm) simultaneously connected in series. In terms of linearity, precision and accuracy, the method was validated using tablets containing atorvastatin and simvastatin.The CAD is designated to be a non-linear detector in a wide dynamic range, however, in this application and in the tested concentration range its response was found to be perfectly linear. The limits of quantitation (0.1 μg/ml) were found to be two times lower than those of UV detection.