Stability of 90 mg/mL cefuroxime sodium solution for administration by continuous infusion

Abstract

Continuous infusions of β-lactam antibiotics increase pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic target attainment. However, this way of administration brings about some practical issues such as stability. This study aims to determine the stability of a 90 mg/mL cefuroxime sodium solution. Cefuroxime sodium was reconstituted and mixed with 50-mL 0.9% saline to produce 90 mg/mL solution in polypropylene syringes which were stored at 4 °C, 25 °C and 40 °C. Cefuroxime sodium concentration was determined periodically over 14 days using a stability-indicating high-performance liquid chromatographic method with ultra-violet detection. The loss in concentration was less than 10% after 2 days of storage at 25 °C and less than 5% after 14 days of storage at 4 °C. The concentration fell below 60% after 1 day at 40 °C. Solutions darken in appearance with time and heat. A 90 mg/mL cefuroxime sodium solution stored in polypropylene syringes is stable for 2 days at 25 °C and for at least 14 days at 4 °C.

Keywords:

• Cefuroxime
• Drug stability
• Polypropylene syringes
• Continuous infusion
• High-performance liquid chromatography

Declaration of interest

The authors report no declarations of interest.

Acknowledgments

We like to thank V. Hurlet for his technical help during chromatographic and data processing and P. Damas, F. Frippiat, C. Ernes and N. Layios for helpful comments.