Measuring the temperature of medicine cool bags 2-8°C and 16-25°C

There are a few things to consider when testing bags: the ambient temperature, the type of medication, and the static temperature of the medication itself. What we care about is the temperature of the medication itself (not the air around it).

Supplies:

1. Syringes, bottles and pre-filled pens filled with water
2. Temperature controllers (we use a MadgeTech Thermocouple Datalogger, with 8 different temperature probes)
3. A temperature controlled black box that keeps the tested bag at a constant temperature

When testing a medicine cooler bag, we try to reproduce normal usage conditions as closely as possible. We first fill syringes, pens and bottles with water and place them in a household refrigerator so that they are between 2 and 8°C.

We then prepare the bag by placing the gel packs in a freezer at -18°C for at least 14 hours. -18°C is the temperature of a standard household freezer.

We place the MadgeTech temperature probes in the syringes, pens and bottles filled with water, so that they measure the temperature of the liquid. These probes are connected to the MadgeTech temperature controller, which in turn is connected to a computer that records the temperature every minute. The bottles, syringes and pens are then placed in the medicine cooler bag to be tested, together with the well-frozen gel packs in the correct position.

The entire test takes place in a controlled temperature environment (black box) which is kept at a constant temperature of 24.2°C. The computer records the temperature every minute for 12, 24 or 36 hours, depending on the bag being tested.

Why 24.2°C?

24.2°C is internationally considered an average ambient temperature and is also the temperature maintained inside aircraft. Since most people use medicine cooler bags for traveling on aircraft, this is the reference temperature used to test isothermal bags.

What if I use my medicine cool bag at a higher temperature?

If you use a medicine cooler that has been tested to keep your medication between 2 and 8°C for 24 hours, at an ambient temperature of 30°C, it will not last as long as 24 hours.

At MediCooler we do our utmost to create bags that perform perfectly, but the performance of the bag is determined by the intrinsic limitations of the environment in which it is used.