Rapid and inexpensive high-performance liquid chromatographic method for the quantification of flecainide in serum.

Flecainide acetate [ 2,5-di(2,2,2-trifluoroethoxy ) -N(2-piperidylmethyl) benzamide acetate; Tambocor@ ] has been shown to markedly suppress ventricular and supraventricular rhythm disorders [l-7]. Effective serum levels of flecainide range from ca. 0.2 to 1.0 pg/ml [1,3,6-g]. Although the antiarrhythmic efficacy of flecainide acetate is not correlated directly with its serum level, the determination of the drug is recommended where drug therapy is ineffective in order to differentiate failure of therapy from suboptimal dosing, where adverse effects occur, or in order to check a patient’s compliance. The aim of this study was to develop a high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) assay for flecainide acetate which is rapid and accurate in the therapeutic range and inexpensive, allowing easy drug monitoring in clinical practice.