Simultaneous HPTLC determination of imidazole antimycotics and parabens in creams

A simple and reliable HPTLC method has been developed for simultaneous determination of antimycotics (bifonazole and econazole nitrate) and preservatives (methyl- and propylparaben) in medicinal creams. Chromatography was performed on silica gel plates with ethyl acetate- n -hexane-methanol-ammonia-diethylamine, 0.5 + 4 + 0.8 + 0.4 + 2 ( v/v ) as mobile phase. Chromatographic zones corresponding to spots of econazole nitrate, bifonazole, and parabens were scanned in reflectance/absorbance mode at λ = 230, 250, and 300 nm, respectively. The method was successfully applied to simultaneous determination of the compounds in commercially available pharmaceuticals.