PVC-free blood bags begin milestone in vitro studyPVC-free blood bags begin milestone in vitro study

Whatever you may think about the science supporting the alleged health risks of PVC and phthalates, the marketing battle has been lost. "PVC free" is a slogan that resonates in the public space, much in the same way as gluten free, even when the latter promotes a product that never contained gluten in the first place. Early on, Danish company Melitek (Alslev) has been at the forefront of developing and supplying thermoplastic elastomer and polyolefin compounds for use as PVC replacement materials in the healthcare sector. The company has just announced a new milestone: PVC-free blood bags, which are produced at Melitek's plant near Copenhagen from soft polyolefin materials, have begun in vitro testing at Karolinska University Hospital with donor blood. There are currently no PVC-free blood bags for red blood cells on the market, and one of the goals of the test, and indeed the entire EU-sponsored project, is to "prove to healthcare providers, industry and the public that it is possible to substitute PVC in one of the [remaining healthcare] applications where PVC containing DEHP phthalates [is] in use", says Business Director Jesper Laursen.