SENSITIVE SKIN AND STRATUM-CORNEUM REACTIVITY TO HOUSEHOLD CLEANING PRODUCTS

Products intended for individuals with sensitive skin are being increa singly developed by formulators of household cleaning products. Howeve r, there is currently no consensus about the definition and recognitio n of the biological basis of sensitive skin. We sought to determine th e relation between the nature of environmental threat perceived as agg ressive by panelists, and the stratum corneum reactivity to household cleaning products as measured by the corneosurfametry test. Results in dicate substantial differences in irritancy potential between propriet ary products. Corneosurfametry data show significant differences in st ratum corneum reactivity between, on the one hand, individuals with ei ther non-sensitive skin or skin sensitive to climate/fabrics, and, on the other hand, individuals with detergent-sensitive skin. It is concl uded that sensitive skin is not one single condition. Sound informatio n in rating detergent-sensitive skin may be gained by corneosurfametry . (C) Munksgaard, 1996.