Department of Dermatology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, 676 N St Clair St, Suite 1600, Chicago, IL 60611, USA.
Pediatrics. 2011 Jul;128(1):92-102. doi: 10.1542/peds.2010-1079. Epub 2011 Jun 6.
The skin is increasingly recognized as a component of the innate immune response, in addition to its role as a physical barrier. Although the deleterious effects of solar ultraviolet radiation (UVR), including immunosuppression and cutaneous tumorigenesis, are widely acknowledged, most studies to date have concentrated on adult skin. Despite the more sensitive nature of infant and toddler skin, little is known about its responses to UVR exposure, whether acute or long-term. Accumulating evidence suggests not only that the skin's barrier protection remains immature throughout at least the first 2 years of life but also that accumulation of UVR-induced changes in the skin may begin as early as the first summer of life. Such evidence not only affirms the importance of sun protection during the infant and toddler years but underscores the need for more research to establish evidence-based standards of care in this area. In this article we review recent studies in which differences between the skin properties of infants and young children and those of adults were compared, and we discuss the implications of these differences for sun-protection practices.
皮肤除了作为物理屏障外，越来越被认为是先天免疫反应的组成部分。虽然太阳紫外线辐射（UVR）的有害影响，包括免疫抑制和皮肤肿瘤发生，已被广泛认识，但迄今为止的大多数研究都集中在成人皮肤。尽管婴儿和学步期儿童的皮肤更为敏感，但对于其对 UVR 暴露的反应，无论是急性还是长期的，知之甚少。越来越多的证据表明，皮肤的屏障保护在至少生命的头 2 年中仍然不成熟，而且皮肤中 UVR 诱导的变化的积累可能早在生命的第一个夏天就开始了。这种证据不仅肯定了在婴儿和学步期保护皮肤免受阳光照射的重要性，而且强调了需要进行更多的研究，以在这一领域建立基于证据的护理标准。在本文中，我们回顾了最近的研究，这些研究比较了婴儿和幼儿皮肤与成人皮肤之间的差异，并讨论了这些差异对防晒措施的影响。
