The chamber‐scarification test for irritancy *

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Abstract
A procedure has been designed (the chamber‐scarification test), which possesses greatly increased sensitivity for assessing the irritancy of topically applied materials. A forearm test site is criss‐cross scarified by drawing a 30‐gauge needle over the skin with just enough pressure to cleave the epidermis without drawing blood. The test agent is applied in an aluminum chamber once daily for 3 days.The advantages of the method over conventional patch testing are: enhanced capacity to measure mild irritants, reduced time (3 days versus 10 to 21 days), less effort, less cost, less discombort for the volunteers and greater reproducibility.