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FACTORS INFLUENCING THE PENETRATION OF THE SKIN BY CHEMICAL AGENTS
Author(s) -
Culliumbine H.
Publication year - 1948
Publication title -
quarterly journal of experimental physiology and cognate medical sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.925
H-Index - 101
eISSN - 1469-445X
pISSN - 0033-5541
DOI - 10.1113/expphysiol.1948.sp000923
Subject(s) - penetration (warfare) , defatting , sweat , moisture , chemistry , materials science , composite material , chromatography , medicine , engineering , operations research
Using the common vesicants, mustard gas and lewisite, a study has been made of the factors influencing penetration of the skin. It has been concluded that penetration is facilitated by the presence of moisture on the skin and is hindered by the presence of fat. Defatting the surface of the skin will increase penetration, while active sweating with evaporation reduces penetration. The influence of a rise in external temperature is more complex, depending on whether the sweat is allowed to evaporate away and the degree of hyperæmia produced.