Treatments Improving Skin Barrier Function

Moisturizers affect the stratum corneum architecture and barrier homeostasis, i.e. topically applied ingredients are not as inert to the skin as one might expect. A number of different mechanisms behind the barrier-influencing effects of moisturizers have been suggested, such as simple deposition of lipid material outside the skin. Ingredients in the moisturizers may also change the lamellar organization and the packing of the lipid matrix and thereby skin permeability. Topically applied substances may also penetrate deeper into the skin and interfere with the production of barrier lipids and the maturation of corneocytes. Furthermore, moisturizing creams may influence the desquamatory proteases and alter the thickness of the stratum corneum.