What is ICCBBA?
ICCBBA stands for International Council for Commonality in Blood Banking Automation. It is an international non-profit organisation responsible for the development and maintenance of the ISBT 128 standard — the global standard for identification, labelling and traceability of biological products.
ICCBBA manages the code structure for blood, tissues, cells and organ donation.
🩸 What is ISBT 128?
ICCBBA’s main task is to maintain the ISBT 128 standard:
- A global system for the unique identification of medical products of human origin (MPHO)
- Used for products such as:
- Blood and blood components
- Stem cells
- Organs and tissues
- Human milk
- Reproductive material (e.g. oocytes, sperm)
🎯 Why are ICCBBA / ISBT 128 important?
| Goal | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Unique identification | Each product receives a globally unique code |
| Traceability | From donor to recipient and back |
| International compatibility | The same code system in hospitals worldwide |
| Safety and quality | Prevents mix-ups or errors in transfusion or transplantation |
| Legal compliance | Required in many countries for GMP and hospital registration |
🔢 Example of an ISBT 128 code
An ISBT 128 label includes:
- Donation Identification Number (DIN) – unique donation ID
- Product code – description of the product type (e.g. “irradiated red cells”)
- Blood group – including rhesus factor
- Expiry date
- Special attributes – e.g. CMV-negative, irradiated
The data is shown both in human-readable text and in one or more 2D barcodes.
🔗 ICCBBA vs. other systems
| System | Application |
|---|---|
| GS1 | Commercial products, medical devices |
| HIBC | Hospital products and medication (US-oriented) |
| ICCBBA / ISBT 128 | Biological products (MPHOs) such as blood, tissue |
🌍 Who uses ISBT 128?
- Hospitals and blood banks worldwide
- LIMS systems in laboratories
- Donor and transplantation registries
- National blood supply organisations (e.g. Sanquin, NHS Blood and Transplant)
- GMP-compliant production of cell therapies and ATMPs
📌 In summary
ICCBBA develops and maintains the ISBT 128 standard, used worldwide to safely and traceably code blood, tissue and other human products.
It is an essential link in the chain of donation, processing, storage and use in patient care.