Ritrama has released a new blood bag labeling product, the RI-337 White AP970 WG62. It is a matte, white synthetic paper that the company says is ideal for application to a pliable surface, such as a blood or plasma bag. It offers excellent reistance to plasticizers; and adhesive AP970 ensures a secure bond with the bag’s surface

“With millions of people requiring blood transfusions each year, blood and plasma bag labels must be reliable to meet the stringent tracking and identification requirements for each bag stored in blood banks, healthcare facilities, hospitals and laboratories,” the company says. 

“An absolute ‘must’ for a blood and plasma bag label is the need for it to be clearly legible. Identification of blood groups, barcodes and expiry dates on labels of these bags are essential to prevent serious complications for patients: Ritrama offers a synthetic paper labelstock material which can be printed with traditional methods (i.e. UV letterpress, UV screen printing and UV flexo) before thermal transfer printing may be used to complete the information with a variable data print to record patient and transfusion details.”

Blood and plasma bags must withstand a series of challenging environmental conditions during the process of testing and storage and, of course, a label must remain positively attached during the entire lifespan of the bag. Centrifugation, cryogenic freezing, refrigeration, manual handling and a change in temperature exposure are some examples of the required performance of the label.

This new Ritrama product meets all regulations for labeling a blood and plasma bag. It carries ISEGA approval according to DIN EN ISO 3826-1 for “Plastic Collapsible Containers for Human Blood and Blood Components”. This standard certifies that the adhesive components of our material have been found not to migrate through the plastic into the bags, hence making it a safe and suitable choice for blood bag labeling.