<Anchor>



I told you yesterday (22nd) that the free flu vaccine was stopped due to exposure to room temperature for a vaccine that should be distributed in a refrigerated state.

However, experts are concerned that the possibility of side effects cannot be ruled out.



Reporter Nam Joo-hyun on the report



<Reporter> The



flu vaccine, which was expected to be hit by teenagers aged 13 to 18, is stacked in the refrigerator.



The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stopped vaccination due to reports that some of the 5 million vaccines supplied to medical institutions had a problem.



[Eun-Kyung Jung/Director of the Korea Disease Management Administration: Refrigerated cars go and redistribute them by region. In the process of re-distribution, it is judged that some of them were exposed to room temperature...

.] In



any case, the flu vaccine should be stored refrigerated between 2 and 8 degrees Celsius.



This is because when exposed to room temperature, the protein in the vaccine may be denatured and the effect may be reduced or side effects may occur after vaccination.



The 5 million vaccines in question are about a sixth of the total supply this winter.



The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) has said that it will test some of the 5 million dogs, and if there is no problem, it will be vaccinated again in two weeks, but it is unclear whether it will be possible to ensure safety.



This is because the efficacy can be verified in advance, but the side effects are unknown.



[Kim Jeong-ki/Professor of the Department of Pharmacy, Korea University: What will you do when you give the vaccine to many people and have an adverse reaction later...

.] Since



vaccine production takes about three months, vaccination this winter can be difficult if all of the offending vaccines are discarded.



It is known that the company that exposed the flu vaccine to room temperature was Shinsung Pharmaceutical and was selected as the first procurement company this year because it was not adequately prepared during the prosecution's investigation on charges of obstructing bidding.