title: Evaluation of cutaneous insensible water loss during hyperbaric exposure in humans.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Water evaporation diminishes in high pressure environment, however it is unknown whether insensible water dissipation from the human skin falls as a function of the increased environmental pressure. We designed the present study to measure cutaneous insensible water loss at various pressures during exposure to a simulated saturation dive.
  
  
  METHODS
  Four healthy male volunteers were exposed to eight different pressures between 1 and 18.4 atmospheres absolute (atm abs). Resting insensible water loss from the skin was measured as change in the body weight and corrected for the weight of the respiratory CO2 - O2 gas exchange and the respiratory water dissipation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We made an equation for the relationship between cutaneous insensible water loss and environmental pressure as: w = 14.5 X p(-0.48), where, w is cutaneous insensible water loss in g x m(-2) x h(-1), and P is the environmental pressure in atm abs. The average cutaneous insensible water loss (15.3 g x m(-2) x h(-1)) at normal atmosphere decreased (p < 0.01) to 4.2 g x m(-2) x h(-1) (reduced by 73%) during a saturation dive to 18.4 atm abs.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The amount of insensible water loss estimated from the equation was comparable to that of reported observations.
authors.affiliation: Marine Ecosystems and Environment Research Department, Japan Marine Science and Technology Center, Yokosuka. yamaguchih@jamstec.go.jp
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yamaguchi
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mohri
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Shiraki
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001274:Atmospheric Pressure; D001833:Body Temperature Regulation / Q000502:physiology; D001835:Body Weight; D001944:Breath Tests; D002245:Carbon Dioxide / Q000032:analysis; D004242:Diving / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010100:Oxygen / Q000032:analysis; D010101:Oxygen Consumption / Q000502:physiology; D011659:Pulmonary Gas Exchange / Q000502:physiology; D012123:Pulmonary Ventilation / Q000502:physiology; D012879:Skin Physiological Phenomena; D014870:Water Loss, Insensible / Q000502:physiology*; D014882:Water-Electrolyte Balance / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D002245:Carbon Dioxide; D010100:Oxygen