Skin Anatomy Essay

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DERMATOLOGY Skin is the largest organ of the body, covering and protecting the entire surface of the body. The total surface area of skin is around 3000 sq inches or roughly around 19,355 sq cm depending on age, height, and body size. The skin, along with its derivatives, nails, hair, sweat glands, and sebaceous glands forms the integumentary system. Besides providing protection to the body the skin has a host of other functions to be performed like regulat­ing body temperature, immune protection, sensations of touch, heat, cold, and pain through the sensory nerve endings, communicating with external openings of numerous other body systems like digestive system, urogenital system, and respiratory system via mucous mem­branes and also one of the most important function of acting as a storage house of energy by collection of adipose tis­sue, which is the principal fat depot in the body. It is the first line of defense of our body against any organism. So, lets now study the physiology and anatomy of skin in detail. ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY The skin is primarily composed of three layers. The skin, which appears to be so thin, is still itself divided into epider­mis, dermis, and subcutaneous layer or hy­podermis. Please refer to the figure below to understand all the three layers. Each layer has it own function and own importance in maintaining the integrity of skin and thereby the whole body structure. So lets, study each part in detail. 1. Epidermis: Epidermis is the topmost layer or rather the visible part of the skin that is composed of stratified squamous epithelial cells. This layer is com­posed of five layers of cel1s, which are arranged in two zones; the superficial horny layer and a germinal layer beneath it. The horny layer is again made up of three layers of cells. These are stratum corneum , which is the superficial layer. It has thin, flat, dead cells filled

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