Disopyramide determination by gas chromatography, liquid chromatography, and gas chromatography--mass spectrometry

Disopyramide is determined in serum by gas chromatography with a nitrogen-selective detector, by liquid chromatography, and by gas chromatography--mass spectrometry. Comparable results are obtained with the three techniques, with a within-run and between-run precision of 5 to 10% (coefficient of variation). Least-squares analysis of data on patients' sera, analyzed first by gas chromatography (y) and then liquid chromatography (x), gave a slope of 1.12; y-intercept, -0.31; standard error of estimate, 0.46; and correlation coefficient, 0.94. Comparison of patients' sera by gas chromatography (y) and then by gas chromatography--mass spectrometry (x) gave a slope of 0.94; y-intercept, 0.42; standard error of estimate, 0.38; and correlation coefficient, 0.97. Interferences observed when using one technique--for example, gas chromatography--can be eliminated by analyzing the sample extract with one of the other techniques.