Non contact method for <i>in vivo</i> assessment of skin mechanical properties for assessing effect of ageing

International audienceThe assessment of human tissue properties by objective and quantitative devices is very important to improve the understanding of its mechanical behaviour. The aim of this paper is to present a non contact method to measure the mechanical properties of human skin in vivo. A complete non contact device using an air flow system has been developed. Validation and assessment of the method have been performed on inert visco-elastic material. An in vivo study on the forearm of two groups of healthy women aged of 23.2 ± 1.6 and 60.4 ± 2.4 has been performed. Main parameters assessed are presented and a first interpretation to evaluate the reduced Young's modulus is proposed. Significant differences between the main parameters of the curve are shown with ageing. As tests were performed with different loads, the influence of the stress is also observed. We found a reduced Young's modulus with an air flow force of 10 mN of 14.38 ± 3.61 kPa for the youngest group and 6.20 ± 1.45 kPa for the oldest group. These values agree with other studies using classical or dynamic indentation. Non contact test using the developed device gives convincing results

Temporal evolution of skeletal regenerated tissue: what can mechanical investigation add to biological?

International audienceThe objective here was to experimentally characterize the temporal evolution of the structural and mechanical properties of large volume immature regenerated tissues. We studied these evolving tissues from their genesis in controlled mechanical conditions. We developed an animal model based on the periosteal properties leading to unloaded regenerated skeletal tissue. To characterize the temporal evolution of mechanical properties, we carried out indentation tests coupled with macroscopic examinations and histological studies. This combined methodology yielded a range of information on osteogenesis at different scales: macroscopic by simple observation, mesoscopic by indentation test and microscopic by histological study. Results allowed us to identify different periods, providing a link between biological changes and material property evolution in bone tissue regeneration. The regenerated tissue evolves from a viscous, homogeneous, soft material to a heterogeneous stiffer material endowed with a lower viscosity. From a biological point of view, cell organization progresses from a proliferated cell clot to a mature structure closer to that of the bone. During the first 7 days, mechanical and biological results revealed the same evolution: first, the regenerated tissue grew, then, differentiated into an osteochondral tissue and finally calcification began. While our biological results confirm those of other studies, our mechanical results provide the first experimental mechanical characterization by reduced Young's modulus of such tissue