Methods for in vitro percutaneous absorption studies V: Permeation through damaged skin.

The permeation of compounds through skin damaged by different methods was compared because agents that are absorbed through skin are sometimes applied to a damaged barrier. The removal of the stratum corneum by stripping the skin with cellophane tape was the most effective method for enhancing absorption. A minimal increase in water permeation was obtained when one abrasion line was made with a hypodermic needle, but the absorption increased substantially when three to six lines were made across the site of application. Similar values were obtained with in vivo and in vitro techniques for penetration of cortisone and nicotinic acid through normal and abraded rat skin. Sever damage by UV irradiation to rats in vivo resulted in nicotinic acid absorption similar to that obtained in vitro through abraded or tape-stripped skin. Damage from mild irradiation could not be accurately duplicated by in vitro methods. The magnitude of the increase in absorption of seven chemicals through abraded human and rat skin was related to the extent to which the molecules were absorbed by the skin. The greatest increases in penetration were obtained with the compounds that were most poorly absorbed.