Publications

• MyotonPRO equipped with L-shape probes is perfectly suited for measuring skin stiffness in humans.

Background: There is still a lack of clinically practical device, which allows to perform rapid and accurate examination of the skin condition. For this reason, suitability of the MyotonPRO for the assessment of skin biomechanical and viscoelastic parameters was evaluated in this study. The aim of the study was to establish the reference values of five parameters measured by MyotonPRO various locations of human skin.

Materials and methods: Oscillation frequency, dynamic stiffness, logarithmic decrement, mechanical stress relaxation and creep were measured at three different skin locations (clavicula, volar forearm and shin), using L-shape short and medium arm probes in 32 young female volunteers. Mean values of obtained parameters recorded by both probes were compared among three skin locations while reliabilities of measurements were assessed. Additionally, relationships between all recorded parameters were examined.

Results: There were no statistically significant differences between the mean values of five measured parameters obtained with both probes in all investigated areas. However, statistically significant differences of mean values of almost all parameters measured among three places examined were found. Despite considerable differences in mean values of obtained parameters, there were visible strong correlations between some studied parameters in all three investigated areas of skin.

Conclusion: It was demonstrated in all locations studied that the higher value of oscillation frequency corresponds to the higher value of dynamic stiffness, moreover such tissue recovers faster to its initial shape, and it was characterized by lower creep values. Such results indicate the existence of identical relationships between the same studied parameters in different areas of skin.

Figure 1. MyotonPRO (A), short arm L-shape probe (B), medium arm L-shape probe (C)

Keywords: biomechanical, human, MyotonPRO, skin, viscoelastic

This study demonstrated that MyotonPRO equipped with any of L-shape probes, that is, short arm or MAP can be considered as a skin biomechanical/viscoelastic properties assessment device. This conclusion is due to the fact that MyotonPRO in each tested location was able to record values of five different parameters of the skin, which together allows to describe its basic biomechanical and viscoelastic properties. Moreover, despite the differences in obtained values of parameters, correlations occurring between them were almost identical among all there examined locations.