Miyamoto Kukizo, Munakata Yoko, Yan Xianghong, Tsuji Gaku, Furue Masutaka
Research and Development, Kobe Innovation Center, Procter and Gamble Innovation GK, Kobe 651-0088, Japan.
Research and Clinical Center for Yusho and Dioxin, Kyushu University Hospital, Fukuoka 812-8582, Japan.
J Clin Med. 2022 Apr 11;11(8):2121. doi: 10.3390/jcm11082121.
Mask wearing is described as one of the main public health measures against COVID-19. Mask wearing induces various types of subjective and objective facial skin damage, such as hair pore dilatation and redness. Facial pore size and redness show morning-to-evening intra-day fluctuations. It remains unknown whether mask usage affects fluctuations in pore size and redness. We measured facial skin hydration, transepidermal water loss (TEWL), pore size, and redness four times a day for 6 weeks in 20 healthy young women. After a 2-week no-mask-usage period (baseline period), all subjects wore unwoven masks for 2 weeks; then, for the following 2 weeks, they applied masks after the topical application of a moisturizer containing a ferment filtrate (GFF) skin care formula (Pitera™). We demonstrated that mask wearing significantly increased the intra-day fluctuations of pore size, redness, and TEWL. In addition, significant correlations were evident among these three parameters. Notably, these mask-induced skin changes were significantly improved, achieving a return to baseline levels, by the application of a GFF-containing moisturizer. In conclusion, mask wearing aggravates intra-day fluctuations in pore size and redness. Appropriate moisturization can minimize this mask-related skin damage, most likely by normalizing the elevated TEWL.
佩戴口罩被视为预防新冠病毒的主要公共卫生措施之一。佩戴口罩会引发各种主观和客观的面部皮肤损伤，如毛孔扩张和泛红。面部毛孔大小和泛红在一天中会出现早晚波动。目前尚不清楚佩戴口罩是否会影响毛孔大小和泛红的波动情况。我们对20名健康年轻女性进行了为期6周的研究，每天测量她们面部皮肤的水合作用、经表皮水分流失（TEWL）、毛孔大小和泛红情况4次。在2周的不佩戴口罩期（基线期）后，所有受试者佩戴无纺布口罩2周；然后，在接下来的2周里，她们在局部涂抹含有发酵滤液（GFF）护肤配方（Pitera™）的保湿霜后再佩戴口罩。我们发现，佩戴口罩会显著增加毛孔大小、泛红和TEWL的日内波动。此外，这三个参数之间存在显著相关性。值得注意的是，通过涂抹含有GFF的保湿霜，这些由口罩引起的皮肤变化得到了显著改善，恢复到了基线水平。总之，佩戴口罩会加剧毛孔大小和泛红的日内波动。适当的保湿可以将这种与口罩相关的皮肤损伤降至最低，很可能是通过使升高的TEWL恢复正常来实现的。
