Too Hot, Too Cold: Issues With Vaccine Storage

In the United States, infants, children, and adolescents receive ∼130 million immunizations annually as part of the recommended childhood and adolescent immunization schedule.1,2 In addition, recommendations for annual influenza immunization have become more inclusive,1,2 and new pediatric vaccines continue to be licensed.3 Each recommended vaccine has specific storage requirements that must be maintained during transport and after receipt until administration. To guide immunization programs and health care professionals, information on vaccine administration and storage is provided in the Red Book from the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Infectious Diseases; in the “General Recommendations on Immunization” statement from the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)4,5; and in the CDC publication “Vaccine Management: Recommendations for Storage and Handling of Selected Biologicals.”6 Vaccine susceptibility to loss of potency from out-of range temperatures depends on … Address correspondence to Larry K. Pickering, MD, FAAP, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Rd, NE, Mailstop E05, Atlanta, GA 30333. E-mail: lpickering{at}cdc.gov