Dermatologists and skin biologists have traditionally approached the diagnosis of skin diseases by either a very gross measurement of its physical state, i.e. a skin pinch, or at the other extreme by being concerned with the cellular and sub-cellular organisation of the skin. Recently, using methods often borrowed from materials science, techniques have been developed and used to aid the investigation of the changes that occur with disease and ageing, for example. A review of these methods developed to study the structure and function of skin by the physical scientists working in close collaboration with dermatologists, pathologists and skin biologists is presented.

87.19.X- Diseases

87.17.-d Cell processes

87.19.R- Mechanical and electrical properties of tissues and organs

87.19.Pp Biothermics and thermal processes in biology

87.80.-y Biophysical techniques (research methods)

87.16.-b Subcellular structure and processes

Instrumentation and measurement

Medical physics

Biological physics

Issue 2 ( 1 May 1991)