Percutaneous Absorption in Preterm Infants

Abstract: The skin of preterm infants varies considerably in its level of maturity. To understand skin absorption in premature infants better, we report a technique for the assessment of percutaneous absorption at various gestational and postnatal ages using stable, isotope‐labeled (¹³C₆) benzoic acid. Our results indicate that in the preterm infant, this method detects enhanced skin absorption in the first postnatal days, which declines over three weeks to that expected of a full‐term infant. This approach also indicates an inverse relationship between gestational age and skin absorption, as well as postnatal age and skin absorption. The reported technique is a safe and noninvasive method using a model skin penetrant for the study of percutaneous absorption in preterm infants from which basic data may be derived to add to our understanding of skin barrier function.