Evaluation of astemizole purity by HPLC

A liquid chromatographic method is described for the evaluation of Astemizole purity. The method is also applicable for the analysis of pharmaceutical dosage forms of Astemizole using indole as internal standard. Separation was achieved with a micro bondapak C(18) column and phosphate buffer (pH 6.0):acetonitrile (50:50 v/v) as eluent, at a flow rate of 1.5 ml/min with UV detection at 280 nm. The method is suitable for estimating the possible impurities if any present in Astemizole up to 0.05% for 1a and 0.25% for 1b. The method is simple, rapid and accurate for the analysis of Astemizole.