Di-2-ethylhexylphthalate (DEHP) content of blood or blood components stored in plastic bags

Di-2-ethylhexylphthalate (DEHP) is a plasticizer used in the manufacture of plastic bags for blood products, which may be toxic. No more than a trace (less than 0.1 microgram/ml) could be detected in anticoagulants in blood bags, or in the blood of healthy untransfused subjects. A mean of 23 microgram/ml was found in ACD whole blood after 2 weeks storage, and 46 microgram/ml after 3 weeks; the corresponding figures for packed cells were 39 and 45 microgram/ml. The level in CPD whole blood was similar. Fresh frozen plasma and cryoprecipitate contained 7 microgram/ml, while levels of 1.0 and 0.7 microgram/ml of DEHP were found in the blood of two patients who had received massive transfusions. Most DEHP in stored blood was associated with plasma lipoproteins.