10.3929/ETHZ-B-000411450
Pensalfini, Marco
How cosmetic tightening products modulate the biomechanics and morphology of human skin
ETH Zurich
2020
Research Data
Pensalfini, Marco
Mazza, Edoardo
Mazza, Edoardo
2020
en
text/csv
2.03 MB
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
The active and passive mechanical behavior of a cosmetic tightening product for skin anti-aging is investigated based on a wide range of in vivo and in vitro measurements. The experimental data are used to inform a numerical model of the attained cosmetic effect, which is then implemented in a commercial finite-element framework and used to analyze the mechanisms that regulate the biomechanical interaction between the native tissue and the tightening film. Such a film reduces wrinkles and enhances skin consistency by increasing its stiffness by 48-107% and reducing inelastic, non-recoverable deformations (−47%). The substrate deformability influences both the extent of tightening and the reduction of wrinkle amplitude. The present findings allow, for the first time, to rationalize the mechanisms of action of cosmetic products with a tightening action and provide quantitative evidence for further optimization of this fascinating class of biomaterials.