Objectives: To compare prevalence and severity of diaper dermatitis (DD) in infants and toddlers (babies) across three countries (China, USA, and Germany), including diapered skin measures and caregiver practices.Methods: A cross‐sectional study of 1791 babies (~600 from each country) was recruited at each clinical site. Based on regional toilet‐training habits, exclusively diaper‐wearing infants were recruited between ages 2‐8 months in China and 2‐18 months in the USA and Germany. DD was measured, as well as skin pH, transepidermal water loss (TEWL), and relative humidity (RH) in the diapered region. Caregiver habits were collected via a questionnaire and included information on hygienic practices.Results: Diaper dermatitis was highest in the perianal area, followed by the intertriginous, genital, and buttock regions. In general, DD was significantly lower in babies in China, highest in Germany, and intermediate in the USA. This rank ordering of DD by geography was also observed in baby age 2‐8 months. The lower DD observed in China was associated with lower skin pH and TEWL on diapered skin and decreased RH in the diaper. Chinese caregivers had the highest rate of prophylactic topical product usage, the most robust cleaning of the diapered area, lack of cleansing after urine‐only diaper changes, and Chinese infants spent the least time in an overnight diaper.Conclusions: These data suggest caregiver behaviors including prophylactic use of topical products, thorough cleaning after stooling and reduced time in an overnight diaper are associated with less DD, lower superficial skin pH, and enhanced skin barrier.

Background: The common cold is the most frequently experienced infection among humans, but limited data exist to characterize the onset, duration, severity and intersection of symptoms in community-acquired colds. A more complete understanding of the symptom frequency and burden in naturally occurring colds is needed. Methodology: We characterized common cold symptoms from 226 cold episodes experienced by 104 male or female subjects. Subjects were enrolled in the work environment in an attempt to start symptom evaluation (frequency and severity) at the earliest sign of their cold. We also assessed the symptom that had the greatest impact on the subject by asking them to identify their single most bothersome symptom. Results: Symptom reporting started within 24 hours of cold onset for most subjects. Sore throat was a harbinger of the illness but was accompanied by multiple symptoms, including nasal congestion, runny nose and headache. Cough was not usually the most frequent symptom, but was present throughout the cold, becoming most bothersome later in the cold. Nasal congestion, pain (eg, sore throat, headache, muscle pains) or feverishness and secretory symptoms (eg, runny nose, sneezing), and even cough, were simultaneously experienced with high incidence over the first 4 days of illness. The single most bothersome symptom was sore throat on day 1, followed by nasal congestion on days 2-5 and cough on days 6 and 7. Conclusion: There is substantial overlap in the appearance of common cold symptoms over the first several days of the common cold. Nasal congestion, secretory and pain symptoms frequently occur together, with cough being somewhat less prominent, but quite bothersome when present. These data establish the typical symptomatology of a common cold and provide a foundation for the rational treatment of cold symptoms typically experienced by cold sufferers.

At birth, human infants are poised to survive in harsh, hostile conditions. An understanding of the state of newborn skin development and maturation is key to the maintenance of health, optimum response to injury, healing and disease. The observational study collected full-thickness newborn skin samples from 27 infants at surgery and compared them to skin samples from 43 adult sites protected from ultraviolet radiation exposure, as the standard for stable, mature skin. Transcriptomics profiling and gene set enrichment analysis were performed. Statistical analysis established over 25,000 differentially regulated probe sets, representing 10,647 distinct genes, in infant skin compared to adult skin. Gene set enrichment analysis showed a significant increase in 143 biological processes (adjusted p < 0.01) in infant skin, versus adult skin samples, including extracellular matrix (ECM) organization, cell adhesion, collagen fibril organization and fatty acid metabolic process. ECM organization and ECM structure organization were the biological processes in infant skin with the lowest adjusted P-value. Genes involving epidermal development, immune function, cell differentiation, and hair cycle were overexpressed in adults, representing 101 significantly enriched biological processes (adjusted p < 0.01). The processes with the highest significant difference were skin and epidermal development, e.g., keratinocyte differentiation, keratinization and cornification intermediate filament cytoskeleton organization and hair cycle. Enriched Gene Ontology (GO) biological processes also involved immune function, including antigen processing and presentation. When compared to ultraviolet radiation-protected adult skin, our results provide essential insight into infant skin and its ability to support the newborn’s preparedness to survive and flourish, despite the infant’s new environment laden with microbes, high oxygen tension and potential irritants. This fundamental knowledge is expected to guide strategies to protect and preserve the features of unperturbed, young skin.

It has been recognized for nearly a century that human beings are inhabited by a remarkably dense and diverse microbial ecosystem, yet we are only just beginning to understand and appreciate the many roles that these microbes play in human health and development. Establishment of the microbiome begins at birth, but many previous studies on infant skin health have focused on Candida species. Little is known on the full microbial composition across different areas and even less is known on how these communities change during disease/inflammatory states. In this clinical study, infants were recruited during periods of diaper dermatitis (DD) and health to characterize the skin microbiome in these two states. Substantial shifts in the skin microbiome were observed across four sites in the diapered area (genitals, intertriginous, buttocks and perianal), as well as during periods of DD. As DD scores increased, there was a shift in relative abundance that demonstrated higher community percentages of faecal coliforms, such as Enterococcus, and lower percentages of Staphylococcus strains. In high‐rash samples, the predominant Staphylococcus species is S aureus, potentially implicating S aureus as a DD aetiological agent. This study provides new information related to the microbiome on infant skin in the diapered area and provides insights into the role of the microbiome in the development of DD.

During embryonic development, the growth of blood vessels requires the coordinated activation of endothelial receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) such as vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-2 (VEGFR-2) and Tie-2. Similarly, in adulthood, activation of endothelial RTKs has been shown to enhance development of the collateral circulation and improve blood flow to ischemic tissues. Recent evidence suggests that RTK activation is negatively regulated by protein tyrosine phosphatases (PTPs). In this study, we used the nonselective PTP inhibitor bis(maltolato)oxovanadium IV (BMOV) to test the potential efficacy of PTP inhibition as a means to enhance endothelial RTK activation and improve collateral blood flow. In cultured endothelial cells, pretreatment with BMOV augmented VEGFR-2 and Tie-2 tyrosine phosphorylation and enhanced VEGF- and angiopoietin-1-mediated cell survival. In rat aortic ring explants, BMOV enhanced vessel sprouting, a process that can be influenced by both VEGFR-2 and Tie-2 activation. Moreover, 2 wk of BMOV treatment in a rat model of peripheral vascular disease enhanced collateral blood flow similarly to VEGF, and after 4 wk, BMOV was superior to VEGF. Taken together, these studies provide evidence that PTPs are important regulators of endothelial RTK activation and for the first time demonstrate the potential utility of phosphatase inhibition as a means to promote collateral development and enhance collateral blood flow to ischemic tissue.

Accurate identification of sleep stages and disorders is crucial for maintaining health, preventing chronic conditions, and improving diagnosis and treatment. Direct respiratory measurements, as key biomarkers, are missing in traditional wrist- or finger-worn wearables, which thus limit their precision in detection of sleep stages and sleep disorders. By contrast, this work introduces a simple, multimodal, skin-integrated, energy-efficient mechanoacoustic sensor capable of synchronized cardiac and respiratory measurements. The mechanical design enhances sensitivity and durability, enabling continuous, wireless monitoring of essential vital signs (respiration rate, heart rate and corresponding variability, temperature) and various physical activities. Systematic physiology-based analytics involving explainable machine learning allows both precise sleep characterization and transparent tracking of each factor’s contribution, demonstrating the dominance of respiration, as validated through a diverse range of human subjects, both healthy and with sleep disorders. This methodology enables cost-effective, clinical-quality sleep tracking with minimal user effort, suitable for home and clinical use.