Sensitive method for the determination of ambroxol in body fluids by capillary electrophoresis and fluorescence detection.

A sensitive and rapid capillary electrophoretic method combined with laser-induced fluorescence detection has been developed for the determination of ambroxol. Samples were derivatized with 5 x 10(-4) M fluorescein isothiocyanate. A linear relationship between concentration and peak area was obtained in the concentration range 0.008-42 microg ml(-1) with a correlation coefficient of 0.9999. The applicability of the method to serum and urine samples was demonstrated. The method is also useful for the determination of ambroxol in pharmaceutical preparations.