Development and evaluation of a shipping system for platelet components

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Blood Product Logistics
• Materials Science

Background:

• Maintaining platelet concentrates and apheresis platelets within 20-24°C during transport is critical.
• Current transport methods face challenges in precise temperature control.
• Ensuring component quality necessitates improved temperature management during transit.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate a novel insulated shipping container system for platelet transport.
• To assess the system's ability to maintain target temperatures under various ambient conditions.
• To determine the impact of temperature stabilizing packs (TSPs) on thermal stability.

Main Methods:

• Molded polyurethane-insulated containers were used with simulated platelet components.
• Experiments included payloads with and without gel-based TSPs.
• Containers were exposed to constant ambient temperatures of 37°C, 4°C, and -10°C for 24 hours.
• Payload temperatures were continuously monitored in situ.

Main Results:

• At 37°C, payloads with TSPs took 6.1-6.9 hours to increase by 1°C, compared to 2.5-3.8 hours without TSPs.
• At 4°C, payloads with TSPs took 4.6-5.6 hours to decrease by 1°C, versus 1.8-3.4 hours without TSPs.
• At -10°C, payloads with TSPs took 2.7-2.9 hours to drop by 1°C, compared to 1.0-1.6 hours without TSPs.

Conclusions:

• The evaluated insulated container system effectively moderates temperature changes in platelet components.
• Temperature stabilizing packs substantially improve the thermal performance of the shipping system.
• The system is user-friendly, durable, environmentally sound, and meets freight carrier requirements.