Storage costs may hamper vaccine use
Thursday April 24th, 2014
Some vaccines could be used more cheaply in poor countries if the cost of storage was reduced, campaigners have warned.
New
research suggests that at least one vaccine, against tetanus, could be
used without cold storage.
The findings were released by Médecins Sans Frontières in advance of World Immunisation Week.
The organisation said pharmaceutical companies probably had information about the heat sensitivity of other vaccines.
The organisation said a study by its research arm, Epicentre, has shown that a tetanus toxoid vaccine stayed effective for up to 30 days in a controlled temperature chain in conditions reaching 40C.
The study was conducted in Chad and involved a vaccine from the Serum Institute of India.
Researcher Dr Rebecca Grais said: "This result I hope will encourage clear guidelines on the more flexible use of the tetanus toxoid vaccine in controlled temperature conditions, so that more people who live in remote areas can be immunised.”
MSF vaccine adviser Kate Elder said: “To ease the burden of the cold chain, we need pharmaceutical companies to use their existing data, and generate new information where needed, to show the true heat stability of their vaccines and demonstrate that some are effective when used outside of the strictest cold chain.
She added: "This is a barrier that can be addressed and overcome; it’s a question of political will and of acting to meet the needs of kids in developing countries rather than just for the economic bottom-line."
The World Health Organisation said it was marking the week by encouraging the spread of information about vaccines to encourage families to ensure they are up to date.
It is studying the use of social media and mobile phones to spread the news.
A spokesman said: "40 years on, the job is still not done. More than 22 million of the world’s children (about one-fifth of infants) are still not being immunised with basic vaccines."
Tags: Africa | Child Health | World Health
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