J. Soc. Cosmetic Chemists, 19, 669-673 (Sept. 16, 1968) An Objective Method for Evaluation of Dandruff Scvcrity* PAUL FINKELSTEIN, Ph.D., and KARL LADEN, Ph.D. Synopsis--An objective method is described to evaluate the severity of dandruff in humans. This involves collecting scurf brushed from the scalp and estimating it gravimetrically. Pre- cautions are noted in the procedure so that reproducible data may be obtained. Each subject serves as his own control. Representative patterns of response are described. INTRODUCTION The technical literature on the causes and treatments of dandruff is extensive but as yet the etiology of this condition is not settled. One of the major reasons for this difficulty is the lack of an objective proce- dure for estimating the severity of the disease. For several years the authors have been using an evaluation pro- cedure which is objective and in which confidence has been developed, since it appears to be in accord with the clinical results reported for a variety of test materials. A number of subjective procedures have been proposed to evaluate the severity of dandruff (1-4). These depend mainly upon a trained ob- server (usually a dermatologist) who rates the severity of the condition on an arbitrary scale. Generally, such techniques have proved useful and commercial products have been introduced based on such studies. Recently, VanderWyk (5, 6) has reported on an objective method for measuring the severity of dandruff which is claimed to be accurate. The method involves the use of a small vacuum cleaner to collect dandruff scurf from the scalp. The scurf is then recovered and weighed. The * A substantial portion of the work reported was carried out in the research laboratories of The Toni Company, Chicago, Ill. t Gillette Research Institute, 1413 Research Blvd., Rockville, Md. 20850. 669

670 JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY OF COSMETIC CHEMISTS method reported here is somewhat analogous in that a scalp brushing technique is used to help collect dandruff scurf for weighing. EXPERIMENTAL In this paper dandruff is defined as the scurf collected from the scalp by a vigorous brushing procedure and free of any hair fibers. This operational definition suffers from the deficiency that any particulate matter so collected, be it environmental soot or skin scales from other kinds of skin diseases, will be counted as dandruff. On the other hand, if care is taken to select subjects who are free of psoriasis and whose occu- pation does not expose them to high levels of soot or dust, this deficiency does not seem to be a serious one. Standard Collection Procedure Only male volunteers have been used since they do not object to disturbing their coiffure for the test. Each subject is assigned his own hair brush. The brushes should be of stiff bristles so that the scalp will be vigorously scraped by the brush- ing. Each subject is instructed to brush his scurf onto a sheet of poly- vinyl acetate plastic approximately 24 X 30 in. in size. The sheet of plastic is taped to a dark colored backing paper to make the scurf easier to see. Each patient strokes his scalp 150 times from the back to the front as he leans over the plastic sheet. Fifty strokes on the left third, 50 strokes on the center third, and 50 strokes on the right third are taken. Then the remaining loose dandruff is shaken onto the plastic sheet by hand. The scurf adhering to the hair brush and that on the collection surface are gathered together for weighing. Loose strands of hair are re- moved. The brushes are cleaned and dried and re-used by the same subject at each collection period. Standard Test Protocol The materials to be evaluated generally are supplied as simple solu- tions or suspensions in water or other suitable solvents. However, the protocol can be varied to evaluate the test material in a shampoo vehicle or in a hair dressing. The subjects are instructed to shampoo their hair with a mild sham- poo* which is supplied to them and then to pour 1 oz of the test material on the scalp. After waiting for 3 min they are directed to rinse the scalp. * White Rain Shampoo, Toni Company, Chicago, Ill.