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Impact of Excess Body Weight on Skin Hydration and Biomechanics

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Measuring the Skin

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Abstract

The WHO regards obesity as an epidemic, affecting more than one third of adults in the United States. Obesity is a key factor for several comorbidities, and naturally, the skin is a major organ involved. This study aims to add knowledge to the characterization of skin functional changes related with excessive body weight.

A sample of 30 healthy female volunteers, 29–46 (36 ± 4) years old, was selected and divided into three groups dependent on their respective body mass index (BMI) – Group I with BMI between 19.9 and 24.9 kg/m2, Group II with BMI between 25 and 29.9 kg/m2, and Group III with BMI between 30 and 39.9 kg/m2. Skin physiology was assessed by transepidermal water loss (TEWL), epidermal hydration (barrier function), and biomechanical descriptors (“envelope” function). Results have shown that excessive body weight compromises both the barrier function and the biomechanical behavior, but the magnitude depends on the severity of obesity and the anatomical area considered. Nevertheless, further studies are still needed to better understand this pathophysiology’s impact on human skin.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. CBIOS – Research Center for Health Science and Technologies, Universidade Lusófona, Campo Grande, 376, 1749-024, Lisbon, Portugal

    Liliana Tavares, Lídia Palma & Luís Monteiro Rodrigues

  2. Plastic Surgery Service, Rua José António Serrano, Lisboa, 1150 199, Lisbon, Portugal

    MªAngélica Roberto

  3. Faculty of Medicine and Health Science, Universidad de Alcalá de Henares, Campus Universitario, Ctra. Barcelona, Alcalá de Henares, 28871, Madrid, Spain

    Mª Julia Bujan

  4. Department Pharmacological Sciences, Universidade de Lisboa – School of Pharmacy, Lisbon, Portugal

    Luís Monteiro Rodrigues

  5. Faculty of Medicine, Public Health Preventive Medicine Institute and Environmental Health Institute, Universidade de Lisboa, Av Prof Egas Moniz, Lisbon, 1649-028, Portugal

    Osvaldo Santos

Authors
  1. Liliana Tavares
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  2. Lídia Palma
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  3. Osvaldo Santos
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  4. MªAngélica Roberto
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  5. Mª Julia Bujan
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  6. Luís Monteiro Rodrigues
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Luís Monteiro Rodrigues .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Medecine Vasculaire Lab. Ingénierie et de Biologie Cutanées, CHU Besancon Service Dermatologie et, Besancon, France

    Philippe Humbert

  2. San Francisco, California, USA

    Howard Maibach

  3. Department of Dermatology, Saint Jacques University Hospital, Besançon, France

    Ferial Fanian

  4. Univ. Besançon Dépt. Dermatologie, Besançon, France

    Pierre Agache

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Tavares, L., Palma, L., Santos, O., Roberto, M., Bujan, M., Rodrigues, L. (2015). Impact of Excess Body Weight on Skin Hydration and Biomechanics. In: Humbert, P., Maibach, H., Fanian, F., Agache, P. (eds) Measuring the Skin. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-26594-0_113-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-26594-0_113-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-26594-0

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