High-performance liquid chromatographic determination of pilocarpine hydrochloride and its degradation products using a beta-cyclodextrin column.

A high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method for the determination of pilocarpine, isopilocarpine, pilocarpic acid and isopilocarpic acid was developed. A beta-cyclodextrin column achieved the separation in less than 10 min. Baseline resolution of all four compounds permitted the determination of each degradation product in the presence of pilocarpine. The calibration graphs for each compound were linear, and pilocarpine degradation products could be determined without a correction for the ultraviolet detector response using a pilocarpine standard. A comparison of beta-cyclodextrin separation with the USP HPLC method demonstrated similar results for pilocarpine contents in several commercial ophthalmic formulations.