Denuded Epidermis
Conditions
Brief summary
Zinc is an important metal for the maintenance of healthy skin and wound healing. Washing with detergents e.g. shower gels may deplete the zinc stores in the skin. The purpose of our study is to see whether repeated washing with zinc containing shower gel of superficial wounds will result in increased healing.
Detailed description
Zinc is a trace element abundantly present in skin with a concentration gradient from the upper stratum corneum layer to the basal layer. This fact probably reflects the necessity for zinc as co-factor in numerous enzymes involved in skin homeostasis and wound healing. Theoretically, showering with surfactants increases the loss of zinc by the shedding of the zinc-rich corneocytes. Thus there is a concern that this forced exfoliation will result in suboptimal zinc levels for the maintenance of physiological processes involved in epidermal homeostasis and repair. A logical development would thus be to supplement shower gel with zinc to compensate for this loss. In 30 healthy volunteers one epidermal wound (10 mm in diameter) is induced by suction and heat on each buttock. The wounds are washed with shower gel containing zinc, placebo shower gel or water (reference). The treatments are allocated by randomization ensuring that 20 wounds are washed with shower gel containing zinc, 20 wounds are washed with placebo shower gel and 20 wounds are washed with water.
Interventions
OTHERShower gel with zinc
Standard shower gel (Sanex) supplemented with zinc sulfate.
OTHERPlain shower gel
Standard shower gel (Sanex).
OTHERDistilled water
Sterile distilled Water.
Sponsors
Bispebjerg Hospital
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
QUADRUPLE (Subject, Caregiver, Investigator, Outcomes Assessor)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to 65 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* Healthy male and female volunteers * Age between18 and 65 years * Written informed consent
Exclusion criteria
* Smoker * Active skin disease in test areas * Hypersensitivity to zinc or any of the shower gel ingredients * Immunosuppressive treatment * Pregnant or breastfeeding females
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Epidermal regeneration | Day 4 | Epidermal regeneration will be assessed blindly by histomorphometry in hematoxylin-eosin-stained paraffin sections of the wounds and by optical coherence tomography. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Bacterial growth | Day 4 | Swabs are taken from wounds and adjacent, treated skin. |
| Skin barrier function | Day 4 | Skin barrier function is measured by transepidermal water loss by an instrument from Cortex. |
| Keratinocyte proliferation | Day 4 | Immunohistochemical detection of Ki67 in paraffin sections of the wounds using mouse monoclonal antibody (MIB-1). |
| Matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-1 expression | Day 4 | Immunohistochemical detection of MMP-1 in paraffin sections of the wounds using mouse monoclonal antibody. |
| Pain | Days 0, 1, 2, 3 and 4 | Pain is assessed on a VAS scale (0-100 mm) by the participant. |
Other
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Serum zinc | Day 0 | — |
| Zinc deposition onto skin | Day 4 | Stratum corneum will be removed by adhesive tape (tape-stripping) for zinc analysis. |
Countries
Denmark
Outcome results
None listed