SOME PHARMACEUTICAL ACTIVE COMPOUNDS IN SURFACE WATERS OF TIRANA CITY

Abstract: Personal care products and Pharmaceutical Active Compounds (PhACs) used for health treatments are commonly reported as pollutants in urban waters and especially in hospital waste waters. PhACs are present not only primary substances used as drugs for the treatment of various diseases but also by the secondary substances which are the products of the metabolism of these drugs. These substances are found in surface waters, urban waters and hospital waters due to their excretion by patients who use them both in home use and in hospital treatments. A large number of these substances have harmful effects on the environment and on living organisms. The determination of antibiotics (amoxicillin, ciproflax and tetracycline) and anti-inflammatory drugs (diclofenac, ibuprofen and nimesulide) in water samples of Lana and Tirana rivers was performed by HPLC/DAD technique. After the validations of analytical method, were taken water samples on 7 stations of Lana River and 5 stations of Tirana River. Samples were taken in February 2021. Drugs isolation is achieved by using the SPE extraction technique using C18 cartriges. Qualitative and quantitative determination is performed using Agilent model 1260 HPLC equipped with quaternary pump and DAD detector. S8 Zorbax-C18 column (15 m x 4 mm x 0.5 um) was used for their separation. Pharmaceutical compounds (antibiotics and anti-inflammatory drugs) taken in the study were detected in almost in all water samples of Lana and Tirana rivers. Their presence was result of direct discharges into this rivers from both urban and hospital wastewaters. The highest level was found for amoxicillin (antibiotic) and ibuprofen (anti-inflammatory). This may be related to their various uses especially during this Covid-19 pandemic period.