Sodium hydroxide-induced subclinical irritation. A test for evaluating stratum corneum barrier function.

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Abstract
This report concerns the development of a short, simple, non-invasive test for assessing sensitivity to irritant dermatitis. Application of NaOH (0.005-2.0 mol/l) to human skin resulted in significantly greater skin surface water loss directly after exposure (1-15 min) than of control (water). The increase in skin surface water loss after NaOH application was dose-dependent (0.005-0.1 mol/l) and application time-dependent (1-10 min). Application times exceeding 10 min did not further increase skin surface water loss and doses higher than 0.1 mol/l reversed the effect on skin surface water loss. 15 min after removal of the alkali, skin surface water loss baseline values were almost regained. This procedure did not cause visible reactions or discomfort for the volunteers. In a subsequent experiment, volunteers were exposed to 0.2 mol/l NaOH for 5 min on one forearm and to 1% sodium lauryl sulfate for 24 h contralaterally. Skin surface water loss after 5 min of NaOH application was significantly correlated with transepidermal water loss measurements after 24 h of sodium lauryl sulfate patch application. This is, to our knowledge, the first description of a procedure for quantifying interindividual differences in stratum corneum barrier function without inducing visible changes or causing volunteers discomfort. Use of this model should help to further investigate skin barrier function as well as to test protective devices and barrier creams.

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