More than 10 years ago, I had the chance to visit the university hospital in Munster, Germany. At the outpatient clinic there, I accidently met a young dermatologist who was devoted to the study of the quantification of irritated skin during his busy daily clinical work. I sensed immediately that this Dr. P. Frosch was conducting his research with the ideals and enthusiasm which were so familiar to me. Soon we found that we shared a similar past experience; we both had begun our careers in dermatological investigation with the same mentor. For me it was more than 25 years ago that I first met Dr. Kligman, Professor at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, USA. I reminisced that I had been greatly shocked by his initial question ''As a dermatologist, do you want to study living or dead skin?" because, at that time and even today, whenever we cannot collect enough information about the skin with the naked eye, it is invasively removed is common practice to histologically examine a skin sample that from living tissue. Many dermatologists still would never think of studying the living intact skin itself noninvasively with the aid of existing advanced technologies to assess its structural and functional properties. At that time Dr. Kligman intended to build up a system of evaluating the skin from various aspects, using methods that had been unduly neglected in the past and introducing various technological instruments.

I: The Basics: Methodology

The Surface of the Skin - The Microrelief
Quantitative Analysis of the Skin's Surface by Digital Signal Processing
Noninvasive Methods for the Determination of Skin Hydration
Transepidermal Water Loss Measurement by Means of an Evaporimeter
Simultaneous Measurement of Thickness and Compressibility of a Skin Fold
Sebum Analysis Using a Hydrophobic Lipid-Absorbent Tape (Sebutape)
Colorimetric Evaluation of the Human Skin Blanching Assay
High-Frequency Ultrasound: ANonivasive Method for Use in Dermatology
II: Clinical Applications
Objective Assessment of Human Skin Reaction to Sun and UV-B
Mechanical Measurements in Assessing Aging
The Effect of Aging on the Barrier Function of Human Skin Evaluated by In Vivo Transepidermal Water Loss Measurements
In Vivo Study on Age-Related Elastic Properties of Human Skin
Ultrasound - An Update on Methodology and Application with Special References to Inflammatory Reactions
Biophysical Techniques for the Evaluation of Skin Protective Creams
Assessing Treatment of Psoriasis and Eczema by Noninvasive Methods
Use of Noninvasive Methods in Evaluating Different Treatments of Psoriasis and the Effects of UV Exposure on Normal Skin
A Novel Fluorimetric Method to Investigate Sebaceous Glands in Humans
Assessing Impaired Blood Supply of the Skin in Peripheral Arterial Occlusion Using Heat Flow Calorimetry
Transcutaneous Oxygen Pressure Measurement: Methods, Implementation, and Possible Applications
Methodology and Application of Fluorescence Techniques in Dermatology
Quantitative Assessment of Scaling in Winter Xerosis Using Image Analysis of Adhesive-Coated Disks (D-Squames).