A simplified method for measurement of desquamation using dansyl chloride fluorescence.

A fluorescence comparator has been used to assess quantitatively the skin fluorescence due to applied dansyl chloride. Experiments were performed demonstrating that measurements with the device had a low intra- and inter-observer error, with coefficients of variation of between 4% and 6%. Another experiment in which fluorescence photographic photometry was simultaneously performed showed that the comparator provided estimates of stratum corneum renewal similar to the more complex photographic technique. Repeated mechanical trauma to the skin and skin stripping showed that the technique can detect alterations in the rate of cell renewal in the epidermis.