Screening and Seasonal Behavior of Analgesics, Non-steroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs, and Antibiotics in Two Urban Wastewater Treatment Plants.

Pharmaceutical active compounds (PhACs) belonging to analgesics, antibiotics, and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) therapeutic classes were monitored in wastewater influents and effluents from two Portuguese urban wastewater treatment plants (UWWTPs) for 24 months. Both facilities were chosen due to their effluents are discharged in highly touristic and sensitive areas, Tagus river and Ria Formosa coastal lagoon, respectively. Target PhACs, acetaminophen, diclofenac, ibuprofen, naproxen, sulfadiazine, and sulfamethoxazole were measured using solid-phase extraction (SPE) coupled to liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS).