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Biomedical subjects

Kathryn L Hatch

Publications and source records attributed to Kathryn L Hatch.

6 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Garments as solar ultraviolet radiation screening materials.

Although wearing clothing to protect one's skin from the harmful rays of the sun is not new practice, this practice is of recent increasing interest. This article discusses 1) three types of protection (sunburn, precancerous skin lesion development, and photoaging) that can be realized by covering the skin with fabric, 2) the process by which some garments come to be labeled with information about ultraviolet radiation protection advantage, 3) the meaning of the information provided on product labels, 4) practical guidelines that can be used to decide which summertime garments having no stated sun protection information are the best for wearing out-of-doors, and 5) the pros and cons of using fabric and sunscreen lotions for sun protection.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

Clothing as solar radiation protection.

The sun is essential for life. Yet, sunlight can also be a source of such deleterious effects as sunburn, and suntanning, as well as premalignant and malignant lesions. These may all occur in individuals with normal responses to sunlight. In addition, there exist a variety of 'abnormal' photosensitivity responses to sunlight that may result from either endogenous imbalances (e.g. the porphyrias) or from added exogenous factors (e.g. drug photosensitivity). The 'normal' responses to sunlight, by and large, are produced preferentially by UVB (290-320 nm), with minor contribution by UVA (320-400 nm) wavelengths. In contrast, the 'abnormal' photosensitivity responses are, for the most part, elicited predominantly by long UVA and, in some cases, visible light. In the last 20 years or so, considerable attention has been paid to the use of fabrics as photoprotective materials. The vast majority of work in this area has been concerned with fabric protection against sunburn. In addition to in vivo measurement of fabric SPF, in vitro evaluation of fabric UPF has been carried out in numerous laboratories around the world. The UPF is estimated from the wavelength-dependent transmission of the fabric, the solar UV spectrum and the erythemal action spectrum over the wavelength region 290-400 nm. Depending on the fabric, UPF values range from 2 to several thousand. More recently, it has become clear that such environmental influences as laundering, solarization, humidity, wetting and degree of stretching may play a major role in fabric protection. Protection also may be altered by addition of dyes, UV absorbers and fluorescent whitening agents. To date, there have been relatively few studies of fabric protection for endpoints other than sunburn erythema. Yet, many fabrics that provide good protection against sunburn may provide inadequate protection against photosensitization by intrinsic or extrinsic absorbing molecules or against (pre)malignant lesions. Future work should explicity address the efficacy of protective fabrics against photosensitivity diseases that are activated by long UVA or visible wavelengths.

Dermatitis, Phototoxic↗
PubMed2003

Disperse dyes in fabrics of patients patch-test-positive to disperse dyes.

BACKGROUND: Little evidence exists that dyes to which individuals are patch test positive are in those garments that they suspect cause their dermatitis, which makes diagnosis and management of colored-textile allergic contact dermatitis difficult. OBJECTIVE: We determined whether disperse dyes to which a patient suspected of having a colored garment-dye contact allergy were in the garment that the patient suspected to be the cause of his or her skin lesions. METHODS: Each patient was patch-tested with 12 disperse dyes in a commercial patch test series. Disperse dyes in the submitted garment(s) were identified. The dyes to which each patient was patch test positive were compared with the dyes identified in that patient's submitted fabric(s). When a dye appeared in both lists, a correlation was found. RESULTS: Twenty-two of 32 garments received contained disperse dyes. In all, 35 different disperse dyes were identified. Twelve dyes elicited a reaction in at least one patient. Only nine patients were patch test positive to at least one dye identified in the fabric submitted. Dyes appearing in both lists were Blue 106 (8 times), Blue 124 (2 times), Yellow 3 (once), and Red 1 (once). CONCLUSION: Dyes to which a patient was patch test positive were infrequently identified in the fabric suspected to be the cause of the skin lesions, which means that the next step will be to patch-test with fabric swatches and extracts of dye from the submitted garments.

Allergens↗
PubMed2002

American standards for UV-protective textiles.

During the last 3 years, three standard documents that pertain to the testing and labeling of UV-protective textile products have been published by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) and the American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists (AATCC). The titles of these documents, which are available for purchase at www.astm.org and www.aatcc.org are: ASTM D 6544 "Standard Practice for the Preparation of Textiles Prior to UV Transmission Testing", AATCC 183 "Test Method for Transmittance or Blocking of Erythemally Weighted Ultraviolet Radiation Through Fabrics", and ASTM 6603 "Standard Guide to Labeling of UV-protective Textiles". This chapter summarizes the content of each document and shows how the documents are linked together to make a comprehensive plan for the testing and labeling of UV-protective textile products to be sold in the United States. It also describes the intended future work in the United States on UV-protective textile standards.

Materials Testing↗
PubMed2002

Influence of wetness on the ultraviolet protection factor (UPF) of textiles: in vitro and in vivo measurements.

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE: Clothing is an important product for sunburn protection and skin cancer prevention. The moisture content of a fabric, which can increase during its wearing, may decrease the fabric's capability of protecting the skin from solar UV radiation, that is, lower its UPF (ultraviolet protection factor). Due to limited data about the effect of fabric wetness on UPF, this study was undertaken to investigate the following: (a) the effect of saturating a variety of fabrics with tap water and with salt water on fabric UPF and (b) whether wetted-fabric UPF values reflect only the fact that the fabric is wet during testing or the fact that the skin is hydrated and the fabric is wet. METHODS: For objective a, 69 summer fabrics were spectrophotometrically (in vitro) assessed when "dry" and when saturated with tap and salt water. In vitro UPFs, percent UVA transmission and percent UVB transmission values were calculated from the transmission data. For objective b, 100% cotton and 100% polyester fabrics were tested in vivo to determine in vivo UPF values. The minimal erythema dose (MED) was determined for each of the 12 subjects on unprotected "dry" skin and on "hydrated" unprotected skin. MEDprotected was determined when the subject's skin was covered with "dry" and with saturated fabric. In vivo UPFs were calculated using this data. Student's paired t-tests were used to determine the effect of wetting. RESULTS: With one exception, in vitro UPF values were the same when the fabrics were saturated with tap water and when they were saturated with salt water. However, saturating the fabrics with water had different effects on the UPF, UVA transmission, and UVB transmission values. For linen, viscose and polyester fabrics, UPF significantly increased. For the cotton fabrics and the polyester + TiO2 fabrics, UPF significantly decreased. For the modal + TiO2 fabrics and the polyester crepe + TiO2 fabrics, UPF significantly increased. From the in vivo testing, the MED of the "hydrated unprotected" skin was not different than the MED of "dry unprotected skin." Values obtained from subtracting dry-fabric in vivo UPF values from dry-fabric in vitro values and subtracting wet-fabric in vivo UPF values from wet-fabric in vitro values are not different. CONCLUSION: Fabrics do not need to be tested when saturated with tap and with salt water. Testing fabrics wet and dry should be done, as the effect of saturating fabric on UPF value varies. Fortunately, UPF values for wetted fabrics reveal only the effect of increased moisture content in the fabric and have nothing to do with wetting of the skin by the fabric.

Adult↗