A sensitive gas chromatographic assay for amitriptyline and nortriptyline in plasma

A method for the quantitative determination of the tricyclic antidepressant drug amitriptyline (AT) and its active major metabolite, nortriptyline (NT), in plasma is described. The method involves a three-step extraction procedure, no derivatization, and a rapid run on a gas--liquid chromatograph equipped with a nitrogen detector. The standard curves were linear in the range of 25-1,000 ng/ml. The lower detection limit was 2-5 ng/ml for both drugs. The method is specific for AT and NT, with a recovery of AT and NT of 68 and 71%, respectively. The precision of the method, expressed as the coefficient of variation, was 10.7% for AT and 12.9% for NT within 25--1,000 ng/ml. The method has proven to be suitable for monitoring plasma levels of AT and NT in patients, and in animals during experimental studies on pharmacokinetics after therapeutic and toxic doses of NT.