Skin hydration and moisture content of outermost skin layers is doubtless the most important factor for skin appearance and feeling.
Consequently, the effectiveness of cosmetic and pharmaceutical moisturizing creams depends on their capability of controlled water release. Although the moisturizing effect of the skin is not the most important factor for the efficacy of pharmaceutical ointments, it often acts as carrier for drugs.
Additionally, moisture uptake causes swelling of the skin and may enhance drug transport, as well. Different to other methods and as a unique feature of in vivo High-Resolution Magnetic Resonance Imaging (Magnetic Resonance Microscopy), HR-MRI provides almost microscopic spatial resolution in vivo and permits the follow up of the time course of skin moisturization with spatial and time resolution.
The most remarkable difference between conventional techniques and High Resolution MRI is the capability of the quantitative measurement of moisture ingress into the particular skin layers at very high spatial and time resolution.
We have found an noticeable hydration of stratum corneum and epidermis up to a skin depth of almost 500 µm.

Intensity profile surface plot of untreated skin