Location and Re-Formation of the Epithelial Barrier to Water Vapor

Abstract

Winsor and Burch¹ studied insensible water loss through the skin after it was removed from the body. They found that light sandpapering, which they claimed removed only the stratum corneum, increased the rate of water loss to approximately the same extent as removal of the entire epidermis. They also found that the roof of an intact cantharides bulla produced as much resistance to water loss as the intact skin. They concluded that the stratum corneum was the main barrier to increased insensible water loss. Blank,² working with abdominal skin in vitro, determined the amount of insensible water loss through normal skin and skin stripped by means of adhesive plaster of part or all of its stratum corneum. Adhesive plaster must remove more of the stratum corneum per unit of stripping than cellophane adhesive tape, since 16 strippings with adhesive plaster were found by Blank