Capillary electrophoresis (CE) is a separation technique particularly
suited to the analysis of pharmaceutical compounds. This review offers
a detailed discussion of the four common modes of detection coupled t
o CE-UV absorption, fluorescence, electrochemical, and mass spectromet
ry-and gives examples of the use of these methods in pharmaceutical an
alyses. Sample preparation and pretreatment techniques used for CE sep
arations are described, as well as methods of preconcentration includi
ng hydrophobic retention, affinity concentration, sample stacking, and
isotachophoresis. The use of affinity CE, chiral CE, and capillary,ee
l electrophoresis for analysis of pharmaceuticals is covered in detail
, and recent advances in capillary electrochromatography and CE on a c
hip are also discussed.