Researchers have created a new tool called the Impact-Based Analysis Method, or IBAM, designed to measure how skin feels and behaves mechanically. This study tested this new device for the first time in living animals to see if it could detect changes happening in skin. Using twelve rats, scientists tracked skin properties over three weeks while observing how wounds healed and how skin responded to injections of hyaluronic acid, a popular ingredient in skincare products. They compared IBAM’s results with two existing commercial devices that measure skin properties. The findings showed that IBAM successfully detected that healing wounds become stiffer than normal skin.
Importantly, when hyaluronic acid was injected, the skin became less stiff, which IBAM could measure. All three devices also picked up changes in how skin felt as it recovered and regrew. This initial trial suggests IBAM could become a useful, affordable tool for objectively measuring skin condition changes. However, more research in humans and other animal models is needed to confirm these promising early results. (Source: J Mech Behav Biomed Mater, via PubMed.)
Source: PubMed — read the full article