A comparative evaluation of three detectors in the HPLC analysis of sodium fusidate

A reversed phase liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method is proposed for the determination of sodium fusidate, a steroid antibiotic, in a commercial ointment using three different detectors: a) fluorescence detector, after a preliminary derivatization with 2-bromoacetyl-6-methoxynaphthalene (Br-AMN), b) UV detection and c) evaporative light scattering detector (ELSD). Fluorescent derivatization was applied directly to the diluted sample, without any purification, whilst UV and ELSD detectors involved a preliminary liquid-liquid extraction procedure to obtain accurate analysis data.