Pharmaceuticals in groundwaters: Analytical methods and results of a monitoring program in Baden-Württemberg, Germany

In this paper, analytical methods for the trace-level determination of 60 pharmaceuticals in aqueous samples are presented. The list of compounds amenable to the methods comprises analgesics, antiphlogistics, antirheumatics, β-blockers, broncholytics, lipid-lowering agents (or their metabolites), antiepileptics, vasodilators, tranquillizers, antineoplastic drugs, iodinated X-ray contrast media, and antibiotics of different kind, mainly sulfonamides, macrolides, and penicillins. All methods are based on automated solid-phase extraction followed by GC–MS (after derivatization of the acid compounds) or HPLC–electrospray ionization MS–MS. After an intense validation, which included the determination of performance data according to the German standard method DIN 32645 (limit of detection, limit of identification, limit of determination), the determination of linearity, recovery, and repeatability and the study of matrix effects, the analytical methods were applied within a monitoring program on the occurrence of pharmaceuticals in groundwaters of Baden-Württemberg. During this monitoring program, it was found that several of the compounds under investigation could be detected in groundwaters and their occurrence could be traced back to an impact of municipal or industrial waste water.