The investigation of the skin biophysical measurements focusing on daily activities, skin care habits, and gender differences.
BACKGROUND
Skin, as a protective barrier to exogenous substances, can be modulated by various internal and external factors that can affect its functional state. In order to prevent the early symptoms and signs of diseases of the skin, frequent skin health assessment should be performed. The aims of the study were to evaluate four skin properties of transepidermal water loss (TEWL), hydration, elasticity, and pigmentation using a non-invasive skin assessment tool, DermaLab Combo(®) , and also to determine possible factors that may influence skin condition.


METHODS
DermaLab(®) Combo was used to measure TEWL, hydration, pigmentation, and elasticity on the forearm of volunteers by using different probes. In this study, four parameters were observed to reflect the health of the skin in 100 volunteers.


RESULTS
There were significant differences (P < 0.05) between TEWL, hydration, pigmentation, and elasticity in different genders on the same anatomical site of the forearm. Female subjects have a higher average value of TEWL, hydration, and elasticity compared to male subjects. The differences may be due to an individual's daily activity and use of skin care products as well as environmental factors. The use of moisturiser and drinking lots of water may keep the skin hydrated and delay the process of skin ageing as shown by the better hydration and elasticity observed (P < 0.05).


CONCLUSIONS
In this study, it can be concluded that DermaLab(®) Combo is a reliable skin analysis instrument that offers high precision, accuracy, and reproducibility for all the measuring parameters. It has also been found that daily activities and habits influence skin condition as reflected by the measurement of these biophysical skin parameters.
Faculty of Pharmacy, International Islamic University Malaysia, Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia.
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H
Hadi
Faculty of Pharmacy, International Islamic University Malaysia, Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia.
A I
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Awadh
Faculty of Pharmacy, International Islamic University Malaysia, Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia.
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Hanif
Faculty of Pharmacy, International Islamic University Malaysia, Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia.
N F A
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Md Sidik
Faculty of Pharmacy, International Islamic University Malaysia, Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia.
M R N
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Mohd Rani
Faculty of Pharmacy, International Islamic University Malaysia, Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia.
M S M
MS
Suhaimi
D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001703:Biophysics / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D055119:Elastic Modulus / Q000502:physiology; D004867:Equipment Design; D019544:Equipment Failure Analysis; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012016:Reference Values; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D017678:Sex Distribution; D012869:Skin Absorption / Q000502:physiology*; D015595:Skin Aging / Q000502:physiology; D017592:Skin Care / Q000379:methods*; D012880:Skin Pigmentation / Q000502:physiology*; D014870:Water Loss, Insensible / Q000502:physiology*; D055815:Young Adult
DermaLab Combo; hydration; skin barrier; skin structures; statistics; transepidermal water loss