High-Performance Liquid Chromatography Using UV Detection for the Simultaneous Quantification of Ropivacaine and Bupivacaine in Human Plasma

A specific high-performance liquid chromatography assay coupled with UV detection has been developed and validated for the simultaneous determination of ropivacaine and bupivacaine in human plasma. A liquid-liquid back extraction procedure was used to increase specificity, and very good and consistent recoveries were obtained: 93%-95% for ropivacaine and 90%-96% for bupivacaine. The lowest limit of quantification was 4 and 8 ng/mL for ropivacaine and bupivacaine, respectively. The method was sensitive, reproducible (coefficient of variation ≤ 6.9%), and accurate (96%-102%) and was applied successfully to study the pharmacokinetics of ropivacaine and bupivacaine in a perioperative context.