In vivo and in vitro investigations of hydration effects of beauty care products by high-field MRI and NMR microscopy.

AIM

Data obtained from in vivo and in vitro measurements on human skin and skin samples are presented.

METHODS

In vivo measurements, using a 3-Tesla magnetic resonance system, on the forearm of three female volunteers show an increase of signal intensity, after application of cream, between 30% and 58%, depending on the cream type. In-plane resolution was 90 microm, with slice thickness of 2 mm. Chemical-shift-selective in vitro microimaging studies were performed on a 9.4-T spectrometer using human skin samples from the abdomen. In these experiments, in-plane resolution was 4 microm and slice thickness was 100 microm.

RESULTS

The results demonstrate clearly the moisturising effect of beauty care products on the stratum corneum, which can be identified in in vitro experiments. No ingress into the skin of the lipid components of the emulsions could be observed in vitro. However, skin occlusion and consequently a long-lasting moisturising effect cannot be excluded.

CONCLUSIONS

These results prove the capability of magnetic resonance imaging to investigate human skin in vivo and in vitro, and to follow the skin penetration of beauty-care products and pharmaceutical ointments.