Upcoming Changes to ISBT 128 Categories and Terminology

ICCBBA would like to inform the ICCBBA stakeholders of planned updates to the structure of certain categories within the ISBT 128 Standard. These updates are intended to improve clarity and ensure the terminology and database structure better reflect the specific types of medical products of human origin (MPHO).

Two of the ISBT 128 Standard categories, Other Blood Products and Other Therapies, currently encompass multiple MPHO types. This overlap has resulted in terminology redundancies and the classification of some terms as non-applicable within sections of the ISBT 128 Standard Terminology document (ST-002).

Below are the details regarding the project and the changes that will be implemented.

Category Composition

Other Blood Products include the following MPHO types:

• Plasma Derivatives
• In Vivo Diagnostics

Other Therapies include the following MPHO types:

• Human Milk
• Topical Products of Human Origin

Current Category Assignments

Within the ISBT 128 PDC Database, the following categories are assigned the following values:

• Other Blood Products – Category 4
• Other Therapies – Category 6

Planned Category Updates

To improve clarity, the restructuring of the categories will be as follows:

• Category 4 will change from Other Blood Products to Plasma Derivatives.
• A new Category 11 will be created for In Vivo Diagnostics.
• Category 6 will change from Other Therapies to Human Milk.
• A new Category 12 will be created for Topical Products of Human Origin.

Database and Terminology Adjustments

These updates will require a thorough review and adjustment of related database elements, such as subcategories, classes, attributes, and product description codes within the ISBT 128 PDC Database. This may include retiring or recoding certain product description codes.

Additionally, non-applicable (greyed) values that do not pertain to specific MPHOs within ST-002 will need to be removed.

Overall, separating these categories will make the database and terminology clearer and easier to apply for each MPHO type.

Expected Timeline

ICCBBA anticipates that these changes will be reflected in the first quarter of 2027.

Stakeholder Notification

ICCBBA is sharing this information in advance to ensure stakeholders are aware of the upcoming updates and can plan accordingly. Additional communications and guidance will be provided as the implementation timeline approaches.

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ICCBBA is the nonprofit international standards organization responsible for the development and management of the ISBT 128 Standard.

The acronym ISBT was originally derived from the important role played by the International Society of Blood Transfusion in the development of the Standard. Today it expands as Information Standard for Blood and Transplantation. The number 128 reflects the 128 characters of the ISO/IEC 646 7-bit character set.

The acronym ICCBBA is derived from the International Council for Commonality in Blood Banking Automation.

For More Information About ICCBBA:
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Media Contact:
Christina Salinas
Email: support@iccbba.org (opens in a new tab)