Feasibility of Sonophoretic Delivery for Effective Skin Optical Clearing

In an attempt to find a noninvasive way to improve the efficacy of skin optical clearing with topical application of optical clearing agents (OCA), we exploited the effect of ultrasound on optical clearing of intact skin in vitro. Changes in optical transmittance and diffuse reflectance of the porcine skin under different treatment procedures were measured by a UV/Vis/NIR spectrophotometer. Clearing capability of glycerol or propylene glycol was much improved with the simultaneous application of ultrasound with a frequency of 1 MHz and a power of 0.75 W over a 3-cm probe. Light transmittance at 470 and 1276 nm increased by 112%-128% and 54%-65%, respectively. The most significant effect was seen where skin was treated with the combination of ultrasound and the chemical enhancer azone, resulting in a 2.3-fold increase of optical clearing at 1276 nm. We demonstrate the feasibility of using sonophoretic delivery methods to improve skin optical clearing with topical application of OCA.