Synopsis

profilometric apparatus (Talysurf 5©) was used to quantitatively analyze the human skin surface and to perform three-dimensional (3-D) topographic representations of the same surface. Positive replicas of abdominal and volar forearm skin surfaces were analyzed in this study. The skin microtopography was scanned with the stylus of the Talysurf 5 ©, recording the x, y, and z coordinates of each point on the surface. The 3-D images revealed the skin surface microstructure accurately (furrows, pores, etc...) and allowed a better understanding of the quantitative evaluation of the human skin surface profiles, as traced by the Talysurf 5©. Use of additional statistical parameters (Skewhess, Kurtosis, etc...) provided new perspectives for ana-lyzing the skin surface and the possibility of detecting the effects of drugs and cosmetics on the human skin surface