The Screening and Quantitation of Diazepam, Flurazepam, Chlordiazepoxide, and Their Metabolites in Blood and Plasma by Electron-Capture Gas Chromatography and High Pressure Liquid Chromatography

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Abstract
The number and frequency of requests made to toxicologists to analyze blood or plasma samples for benzodiazepines are increasing dramatically, but until recently specific and sensitive procedures were unavailable to meet the demand. Gas-liquid chromatography with electron-capture detection has become the analytical method of choice for these drugs because it meets the necessary sensitivity requirements. Prior to the development of this method the available analytical procedures depended on acid hydrolysis of the benzodiazepines to their corresponding benzophenones [1] followed by gas-liquid or thin-layer chromatography. Unfortunately, hydrolysis of several of the benzodiazepines results in the formation of the same benzophenone [2,3] so that the individual parent drugs cannot be readily identified.