SKIN RESPIRATION AS A DERMATOLOGIC TOOL

Abstract

In dermatology there is need for a quantitative criterion of the physiologic condition of the skin. Much dermatologic diagnosis depends on close observation and, in the last analysis, on the experience and judgment of the physician. It would be desirable to supplement this procedure by a more objective method by which variations in cutaneous vitality could be measured. It has been suggested by Adams¹and by Cook²that the respiration of skin may be such a criterion. It is the object of this and succeeding papers to discuss the measurement of the respiration of human skin, its variation with different physiologic conditions and the effect of various toxic agents on it. There is already a background of experimental data relating various pathologic conditions and the action of toxic agents on the respiration of skin. For example, Kadisch³has shown a relation between the localization of infections, the