Measuring transepidermal water loss: a comparative in vivo study of condenser‐chamber, unventilated‐chamber and open‐chamber systems

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Abstract
Background/aims: Two main systems have been utilized for measuring transepidermal water loss (TEWL): open chamber and closed chamber. Yet, further validation and standardization studies may be necessary to reveal the sensitivity, precision, and robustness of these instruments. Methods: Three instruments are compared for their applicability to assess TEWL: unventilated chamber, open chamber and condenser chamber. The comparative study was performed on human forearm skin (n=6), in the normal condition (baseline), and after (1) 10 tape strippings on both arms, (2) moisturizer cream (Eucerin®) and petrolatum application for 1 h, and (3) 1% sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) aqueous solution and distilled water (as control) application for 20 min. Results: The condenser‐chamber system, was the only device among these three that could show the effect of tape stripping on TEWL values as compared with baseline (P0.05). However, only the values obtained from condenser‐chamber device revealed a highly significant change as compared with baseline (PPPP<0.001). Conclusion: Our results highlight the differences between two closed‐chamber TEWL measurement instruments, which are designed based on different measurement principles. This may provide insights to find the best practice to improve the quality, precision and sensitivity of the measurements.