A sensitive and reproducible stir bar-sorptive extraction and high-performance liquid chromatography-UV detection (SBSE/HPLC-UV) method for therapeutic drug monitoring of carbamazepine, carbamazepine-10,11-epoxide, phenytoin and phenobarbital in plasma samples is described and compared with a liquid:liquid extraction (LLE/HPLC-UV) method. Important factors in the optimization of SBSE efficiency such as pH, extraction time and desorption conditions (solvents, mode magnetic stir, mode ultrasonic stir, time and number of steps) assured recoveries ranging from 72 to 86%, except for phenytoin (62%). Separation was obtained using a reverse phase C18 column with UV detection (210nm). The mobile phase consisted of water:acetonitrile (78:22, v/v). The SBSE/HPLC-UV method was linear over a working range of 0.08-40.0microgmL(-1) for carbamazepine, carbamazepine-10,11-epoxide and phenobarbital and 0.125-40.0microgmL(-1) for phenytoin, The intra-assay and inter-assay precision and accuracy were studied at three concentrations (1.0, 4.0 and 20.0microgmL(-1)). The intra-assay coefficients of variation (CVs) for all compounds were less than 8.8% and all inter-CVs were less than 10%. Limits of quantification were 0.08microgmL(-1) for carbamazepine, carbamazepine-10,11-epoxide and phenobarbital and 0.125microgmL(-1) for phenytoin. No interference of the drugs normally associated with antiepileptic drugs was observed. Based on figures of merit results, the SBSE/HPLC-UV proved adequate for antiepileptic drugs analyses from therapeutic levels. This method was successfully applied to the analysis of real samples and was as effective as the LLE/HPLC-UV method.