Cleaning validation: quantitative estimation of atorvastatin in production area

Carefully designed cleaning validation and its evaluation can ensure that residues of active pharmaceutical ingredient will not carry over and cross-contaminate the subsequent product. UV spectrophotometric and total organic carbon-solid sample module (TOC-SSM) method was developed and validated for the verification and determination of atorvastatin residues in the production area and to confirm the efficiency of the cleaning procedure as per ICH guideline. Atorvastatin was selected on the basis of a worst-case rating approach. It exhibited good linearity in the range of 5 to 25 μg/mL for UV spectrophotometric and 7300 to 83800 μg for the TOC-SSM method. The limit of detection was 0.419 μg/mL and 4.19 μg in the UV spectrophotometric and TOC-SSM methods, respectively. The limit of quantitation was 1.267 μg/mL and 12.69 μg in UV spectrophotometric and TOC-SSM methods, respectively. Percentage recovery from spiked stainless steel plates was found to be 95.37% and 92.82% in UV spectrophotometric and TOC-SSM methods, respectively. The calculated limit of acceptance per swab for atorvastatin (35.65 μg/swab) was not exceeded during three consecutive batches of production after cleaning procedure. Both proposed methods are suitable for quantitative determination of atorvastatin on manufacturing equipment surfaces well below the limit of contamination. The ease of sample preparation permits fast and efficient application of the proposed methods in quantitation of atorvastatin residue with precision and accuracy. Above all, the methodology is of low cost, and is a simple and less time-consuming alternative to confirm the efficiency of the cleaning procedure in pharmaceutical industries.

Carefully designed cleaning validation and its evaluation can ensure that residues of active pharmaceutical ingredient will not carry over and cross-contaminate the subsequent product. Atorvastatin was identified as a potential candidate among existing drug substances in production areas based on a worst-case rating approach. Atorvastatin residues were detected and quantified below acceptance limits after cleaning of production equipment using two proposed methods, namely, the UV spectrophotometric and total organic carbon-solid sample module (TOC-SSM) methods. The ease of sample preparation permits fast and efficient application of the proposed methods in quantitation of atorvastatin residue in production equipment area to confirm the efficiency of the cleaning procedure in pharmaceutical industries. Above all, the methodology is of low cost, and is a simple and less time-consuming alternative for cleaning validation.