Laboratory of Connective Tissue, Centro Nacional de Investigación y Atención de Quemados, Instituto Nacional de Rehabilitación "Luis Guillermo Ibarra Ibarra", Mexico City, Mexico.
J Cosmet Dermatol. 2023 Feb;22(2):347-353. doi: 10.1111/jocd.15523. Epub 2022 Nov 21.
Different strategies for hand skin hygiene have been used to prevent the spread of SARS-CoV-2. However, frequent hand sanitization has been associated with skin damage. The present study aimed to evaluate hand hygiene habits during the COVID-19 pandemic and the effect of the repetitive use of soap or alcohol-based products on skin characteristics.
We conducted a survey regards hand hygiene habits acquired during the COVID-19 pandemic. Also, we performed cutometry in a cohort of individuals who cleansed their volar forearms every 30 min, during 4 h, using soap or alcohol-based products.
We received 138 responses from people with medium-high educational level who reported a 2.5-time increase in the frequency of hand cleansing (p < 0.0001) that resulted in skin damage. An in vivo analysis of skin moisture and elasticity was also performed among 19 health workers and students. In general, skin moisture decreased with every cleansing, mainly after 2 h of washing with soap (p < 0.01), while skin elasticity only reduced after 4 h of treatment (p < 0.05). Alcohol-based solution or alcohol-based gel (70% ethanol, both) did not affect skin moisture or elasticity during testing.
It is known that the excessive use of soap or alcohol-based products causes dermatological issues. The present study demonstrates that non-medicated soap significantly affects skin moisture and elasticity, probably because the soap removes the hydrolipidic protective barrier, favoring transepidermal water loss, where the lack of the appropriate stratum corneum hydration also affects skin elasticity, mainly associated with changes in epidermal structure.
为了防止 SARS-CoV-2 的传播，已经采用了不同的手部皮肤卫生策略。然而，频繁的手部消毒会导致皮肤损伤。本研究旨在评估 COVID-19 大流行期间的手部卫生习惯，以及重复使用肥皂或酒精基产品对皮肤特征的影响。
我们进行了一项关于 COVID-19 大流行期间手部卫生习惯的调查。此外，我们还对一组每 30 分钟用肥皂或酒精基产品清洁掌侧前臂 4 小时的个体进行了表皮水分测试和皮肤弹性测试。
我们收到了 138 名具有中高水平教育程度的人的回复，他们报告说手部清洁频率增加了 2.5 倍（p<0.0001），这导致了皮肤损伤。我们还对 19 名卫生工作者和学生进行了皮肤水分和弹性的体内分析。总的来说，皮肤水分随着每次清洁而减少，主要是在用肥皂清洗 2 小时后（p<0.01），而皮肤弹性仅在 4 小时后才降低（p<0.05）。在测试过程中，酒精基溶液或酒精基凝胶（均为 70%乙醇）都不会影响皮肤水分或弹性。
众所周知，过度使用肥皂或酒精基产品会导致皮肤病。本研究表明，非药用肥皂会显著影响皮肤水分和弹性，这可能是因为肥皂会去除水脂性保护屏障，促进经皮水分流失，而适当的角质层水合作用的缺失也会影响皮肤弹性，这主要与表皮结构的变化有关。
