Cold chain time-and temperature-controlled transport of vaccines: A simulated experimental study

• Published in: Clinical and Experimental Vaccine Research
• Main Author: Ng C.Z.; Lean Y.L.; Yeoh S.F.; Lean Q.Y.; Lee K.S.; Suleiman A.K.; Liew K.B.; Kassab Y.W.; Al-Worafi Y.M.; Ming L.C.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Korean Vaccine Society 2020
• Online Access: https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85080142982&doi=10.7774%2fcevr.2020.9.1.8&partnerID=40&md5=bf1079af08532f75a6d35ff2039bf975

Purpose: The objective of this research was to examine the cold chain temperature maintenance for the supply of vaccines and other biological products by pharmaceutical wholesaler. Materials and Methods: In this study, six configurations using cold vaccine boxes or bags made with different materials, with and without insulation, of different sizes, and number of coolant-packs were used to simulate the configuration used by the pharmaceutical wholesal-ers for transportation of vaccine. Model vaccines (vial, n=10) were packed using these six configurations which then stored in an incubator at 38ºC and monitored for 24 hours. Each configuration was tested repeatedly for 5 times. Results: In term of compliance to 2°C–8°C, four out of six tested configurations are effective in cold chain transportation. The effectiveness is highly dependent on the type of passive con-tainers used, size of cold boxes, insulation, and number of coolant-packs. The configuration with a larger polystyrene foam box with five coolant-packs maintained the required temperature up to 23 hours. In contrast, configurations using a polystyrene foam box with four coolant-packs and a large vaccine cold box with two coolant-packs failed to reach below 8ºC through-out the 24 hours. Conclusion: Packaging method, the material and size of the container could have a direct impact on the effectiveness of cold chain temperature maintenance. Polystyrene foam box, cold box with polyethylene interior lining and polypropylene insulation, a cooler bag with proper number of ice packs could be effectively used for transportation of vaccines within their res-pective transportation duration allowance. © Korean Vaccine Society.