Stray field magnetic resonance imaging: a preliminary study of skin hydration

Abstract

We report the first use of GARField (STRAFI-like) magnetic resonance profiling (1D-MRI) to study skin hydration, both in vitro and in vivo. It is shown that, for in vitro samples, a high degree of reproducibility is achievable for skin samples from a single donor and that the signal intensity correlates well with equilibrium moisture content in the skin. In vivo, the method allows measurement of the influence of a moisturizer cream on water levels in the skin as a function of time.