Ultra-performance liquid chromatography electrospray ionizationâtandem mass spectrometry method for the simultaneous determination of itraconazole and hydroxy itraconazole in human plasma

A highly sensitive, selective, and precise ultra-performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry method was developed and validated for simultaneous quantification of itraconazole and hydroxy itraconazole in human plasma by a single liquidâliquid extraction step. The precursor to product ion transitions of m/z 705.3/392.3, m/z 721.2/408.3 and m/z 708.2/435.4 were used to detect and quantify itraconazole, hydroxy itraconazole and itraconazole-d3 respectively. The lower limit of quantitation was found to be 0.500Â ng/mL for itraconazole and 1.00Â ng/mL for hydroxy itraconazole. The mean recoveries for itraconazole and hydroxy itraconazole were found to be 100.045% and 100.021%, respectively. This developed method with a chromatographic run time of 2.0Â min was successfully applied to a bioequivalence study of 100Â mg itraconazole capsule. Keywords: Itraconazole, Hydroxy itraconazole, Ultra-performance liquid chromatography, Human plasma, Simultaneous analysi