Transepidermal water loss
- Transepidermal water loss
Transepidermal Water Loss (TWL) or (TEWL) is a term associated with dermatology and connected sciences.
It is defined as the measurement of the quantity of water that passes from inside a body (animal or plant) through the epidermal layer (skin) to the surrounding atmosphere via diffusion and evaporation processes.
Transepidermal water loss in mammals is also known as "insensible water loss" as it is a process over which organisms have little physiological control.
Measurements of TWL may be useful for identifying skin damage caused by certain chemicals, physical insult (such as "tape stripping") or pathological conditions such as eczema, as rates of TWL increase in proportion to the level of damage. However, TWL is also affected by environmental factors such as humidity, temperature, the time of year (season variation) and the moisture content of the skin (hydration level). Therefore, care must be taken when interpreting the meaning of TWL rates.
Acronym confusion
There is at present some confusion over the correct acronym for Transepidermal Water Loss, with some references using TWL others using TEWL. It is thought that TEWL is often used to avoid confusion with the term 'Total Water Loss' commonly used in some disciplines.
Links
[http://www.tewl.wikia.com www.tewl.wikia.com] - a Wiki with original research and technical detail on TransEpidermal Water Loss.
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Look at other dictionaries:
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