Rapid identification and quantification of chlorpheniramine maleate or pheniramine maleate in pharmaceutical preparations by thin-layer chromatography-densitometry

Thin-layer chromatography (TLC)-densitometry was used to separate, identify, and quantitate chlorpheniramine maleate (CPM) and pheniramine maleate (PM) when present in combination with other drugs in pharmaceutical preparations of tablets, syrups, eye and ear drops, etc. CPM or PM was extracted (tablets, capsules, etc.) or diluted (liquid preparations, if needed) with 80% ethanol and isolated from other ingredients by TLC on silica gel G using cyclohexane-chloroform-methanol-diethylamine (4.5 + 4.0 + 0.5 + 1.0, v/v) as the mobile phase. Separated CPM and PM were detected under shortwave ultraviolet light and quantitated by scanning densitometry at 260 nm. Recoveries of CPM and PM were 100.09+/-0.77% and 100.09+/-0.87%, respectively.