Reliable, low-cost, fully integrated hydration sensors for monitoring and diagnosis of inflammatory skin diseases in any environment.

ABSTRACT: Present-day dermatological diagnostic tools are expensive, time-consuming, require substantial operational expertise, and typically probe only the superficial layers of skin (~15 ?m). We introduce a soft, battery-free, noninvasive, reusable skin hydration sensor (SHS) adherable to most of the body surface. The platform measures volumetric water content (up to ~1 mm in depth) and wirelessly transmits data to any near-field communication-compatible smartphone. The SHS is readily manufacturable, comprises unique powering and encapsulation strategies, and achieves high measurement precision (±5% volumetric water content) and resolution (±0.015°C skin surface temperature). Validation on n = 16 healthy/normal human participants reveals an average skin water content of ~63% across multiple body locations. Pilot studies on patients with atopic dermatitis (AD), psoriasis, urticaria, xerosis cutis, and rosacea highlight the diagnostic capability of the SHS (P _AD = 0.0034) and its ability to study impact of topical treatments on skin diseases.

SUBMITTER: Madhvapathy SR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7821898 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature