title: Interference of paracetamol (acetaminophen) with a commercially available high-performance liquid chromatography analysis of serotonin leading to falsely low serotonin levels.
abstract: Serotonin is frequently analysed by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with electrochemical detection. However, the accuracy of these methods may be affected by the presence of certain drugs. We describe for the first time the interference of paracetamol in therapeutic dosages in a routine HPLC method for serotonin determination in vivo and in vitro. The retention time coincides with N-methylserotonin used as an internal standard in this method. Erroneous increases of the internal standard will lead, if not recognized and corrected, to falsely low serotonin determinations.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine IV, Clinical Chemistry Unit, University Hospital of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany. albrecht.pfaefflin@med.uni-tuebingen.de
authors.forename: Albrecht
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pfäfflin
authors.forename: Karsten
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Müssig
authors.forename: Erwin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Schleicher
mesh_terms: D000082:Acetaminophen / Q000032:analysis*; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid / Q000379:methods; D012701:Serotonin / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: C008494:N-methylserotonin; D012701:Serotonin; D000082:Acetaminophen