Seasonal variations of human pharmaceuticals in rivers of the metropolitan region of Buenos Aires.

PEREZ, D.E.; ROJO, M.; CRISTOS, D.S.; CARRIQUIRIBORDE, P.

Montevideo

Congreso; SETAC Latin America 15th Biennial Meeting; 2023

SETAC Latin America

Urban wastewaters represent a primary source of human pharmaceuticals (HPs) in aquatic environments. This work aimed to assess seasonal variation of HPs and identify those more relevant in the rivers of the metropolitan area of Buenos Aires (AMBA). Two campaigns were carried out, one in summer and the other in winter, along seven watercourses within the AMBA, sampling at 3 to 5 sites per stream. From north to south, selected watercourses were Lujan, Reconquista, and Matanza-Riachuelo rivers, and Del Gato, Maldonado, El Pescado, and Espinillo streams. Samples were filtered in situ and, in the laboratory, submitted to solid phase extraction (SPE) and analyzed by HPLC-MS. Thirteen HPs were analyzed: Acetaminophen (ACE), Alprazolam (ALP), Atenolol (ATE), Bromazepam (BRO), Carbamazepine (CBZ), Clonazepam (CLO), Diphenhydramine (DIP), Fluoxetine (FLX), Ibuprofen (IBU), Lorazepam (LOR), Metformin (MET), Salbutamol (SAL) and Sildenafil (SIL). HPs were classified according to their concentrations (μg/L) and frequencies (%) in four groups: dominant (>1;>50), frequent (50), occasional (>1;