Development and validation of stability indicating method for the quantitative determination of venlafaxine hydrochloride in extended release formulation using high performance liquid chromatography

Objective : Venlafaxine,hydrochloride is a structurally novel phenethyl bicyclic antidepressant, and is usually categorized as a serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI) but it has been referred to as a serotonin-norepinephrine-dopamine reuptake inhibitor. It inhibits the reuptake of dopamine. Venlafaxine HCL is widely prescribed in the form of sustained release formulations. In the current article we are reporting the development and validation of a fast and simple stability indicating, isocratic high performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method for the determination of venlafaxine hydrochloride in sustained release formulations. Materials and Methods : The quantitative determination of venlafaxine hydrochloride was performed on a Kromasil C18 analytical column (250 x 4.6 mm i.d., 5 mu m particle size) with 0.01 M phosphate buffer (pH 4.5): methanol (40: 60) as a mobile phase, at a flow rate of 1.0 ml/min. For HPLC methods, UV detection was made at 225 nm. Results : During method validation, parameters such as precision, linearity, accuracy, stability, limit of quantification and detection and specificity were evaluated, which remained within acceptable limits. Conclusions : The method has been successfully applied for the quantification and dissolution profiling of Venlafaxine HCL in sustained release formulation. The method presents a simple and reliable solution for the routine quantitative analysis of Venlafaxine HCL.