• The integumentary system consists of the skin, hair, nails, exocrine glands, and

nerves.
• Its main function is to act as a barrier to protect the body from the outside world.
• It also functions to maintain the balance of body fluids, protect against infection,
eliminate waste products, regulate body temperature, and synthesize Vitamin D.

The integumentary system has many functions. Most of it is involved in protecting you
and regulating your body’s internal functions in a variety of ways:

1. Protects body’s internal living tissues and organs

2. Protects against invasion by infectious organism
3. Protect the body from dehydration
 4. Protects the body against abrupt changes in temperature
5. Helps dispose of waste materials
6. Acts as a receptor for touch, pressure, pain, heat, and cold
7. Stores water and fat

• The skin, in its own way, functions as a form of armor—body armor.

• It provides a barrier between your vital, life-sustaining organs and the influence of
outside elements that could potentially damage them.
Examples:
• The fact that you can feel an ant crawling on your skin, allowing you to flick it off
before it bites, is because the skin, and especially the hairs projecting from hair
follicles in the skin, can sense changes in the environment.
o It then transmits the information to the central nervous system (brain and
spinal cord), which can then respond by activating the skeletal muscles of
your eyes to see the ant and the skeletal muscles of the body to act against
the ant.

Do TATTOOS have detrimental effects on the Integumentary System?

• Because the needles involved in producing body art and piercings must penetrate
the skin, there are dangers associated with the practice.
o These include allergic reactions; skin infections; blood-borne diseases,
such as tetanus, hepatitis C, and hepatitis D; and the growth of scar tissue.

How do certain care/hygiene products affect the Integumentary System?

1. Hair Conditioner
o Hair is essentially composed of strands of flexible dead keratin cells.
o Conditioner evens out the rough surface (the cuticle) of the hair to make it
look smooth.
2. Deodorant
o Reduces the odor that comes from bacteria in sweat from the apocrine
glands.
3. Antiperspirants
o Blocks sweat glands from producing sweat using aluminum ions
4. Soaps and cleansers
o Rinse off the sebum produced by skin’s sebaceous glands
5. Lotion and moisturizer
o Attempt to bring back the moisture of the skin when sebum does not provide
adequate moisture and lubrication
 As said earlier, the integumentary system mainly consists of the organs and body
parts used to protect all other systems from the outside world. In other words, it is the
system responsible for acting like a “case” for our bodies. The parts involved within
the system are all the parts and subparts of all external parts (with some exceptions).
These are as follows:

I. The Skin

▪ is the LARGEST organ in the entire body

• total area of approx. 25 square feet
▪ serves many important functions:
• Protection
• Sensation
• Temperature regulation
• Vitamin D Synthesis
• Blood Storage (5%)
▪ consists of 3 layers:
• Epidermis – outermost layer
• Dermis/derma – below the epidermis
• Subcutaneous Layer – fat and connective tissue

A. THE EPIDERMIS
• is composed of stratified squamous epithelium that is capable of
keratinizing, or becoming hard and tough.
• is the outermost layer of our skin; the surface.

• Epithelial Tissue: the epidermis is an epithelial tissue, which means it

is avascular, meaning it has no blood supply of its own.
• Keratinocytes: most of the epidermis’ cells are keratinocytes or
keratin cells, which produce keratin – the fibrous protein that makes the
epidermis a tough protective layer.

• Composition: the epidermis is composed of five layers called its strata,

namely:

o Stratum basale
▪ Deepest layer of the epidermis
▪ Closest to the dermis
▪ Connected to the dermis along a wavy, corrugated-looking
borderline
▪ Because it is closest to the dermis, it receives the most
nourishment.
▪ Where mitosis takes place, producing new cells
o Stratum spinosum
▪ The layer directly above the stratum basale.
▪ Consists of 5 to 15 layers of polygonal cells.
▪ Contains the Langerhans cells, part of the immune
system, protecting skin from viral and bacterial infections.
▪ Prickly texture
o Stratum granulosum
▪ The layer above the stratum spinosum.
▪ Consists of flattened granular cells (3-5 layers)
▪ Contain either Keratohyalin (protein structure needed in
producing keratin) or lamellated granules (contain
glycolipids that act as water sealants)
 ▪Flatter than the layers below it
▪Contains more keratin (the further the layer is from the
dermis, the more keratin is present.)
o Stratum lucidum
▪ Clear layer
▪ Made up of dead skin cells
▪ Not present in ALL skin regions; occurs only where skin is
hairless and extra thick
o Stratum corneum
▪ Outermost layer
▪ Protective covering
▪ 20 to 30 cell layers thick
▪ Accounts for ¾ of the epidermal thickness
▪ Rubs and flakes off slowly and steadily

• Cornified cells: dead cell remnants completely filled with keratin. Also
referred to as horny cells.
• Melanin: responsible for the pigmentation of the skin. Produced by
special spider-shaped cells called melanocytes, found in the stratum
basale.
• Melanosomes: membrane-bound granules where melanin is stored.

B. THE DERMIS
• Located below the epidermis
• Mostly made up of dense connective tissue
• Composed of two major regions: the papillary and reticular regions
 • PAPILLARY LAYER
• Upper dermal region
• Uneven, with peglike projections
o On the superior surface called dermal papillae
▪ Furnishes nutrients to the epidermis
▪ Patterns form ridges on the epidermal surface,
helping increase friction and gripping ability
(especially in fingers and feet)
• RETICULAR LAYER
• Deepest layer
• Contains blood vessels, sweat and oil glands, and deep
pressure receptors called Pacinian corpuscles.

• Other components
• Collagen: responsible for the toughness of the dermis; attract
and bind water to help keep skin hydrated
• Elastic fibers: give the skin elasticity; decrease as we age
• Blood vessels: abundant in the dermis; plays a role in
balancing body temperature
o when body temperature is high, the capillaries in the
dermis become swollen with heated blood, causing
skin to turn reddened and warm
o when the environment is cool, the blood temporarily
bypasses the dermal capillaries, allowing body
temperature to stay high.
• Nerve supply: the dermis contains many nerve endings with
specialized receptor-end organs that send messages to the
central nervous system when stimulated by external factors.

C. SUBCUTANEOUS LAYER
• Also known as the hypodermis
• Innermost layer of the skin
• Made up of fat and connective tissues
• House larger blood vessels and nerves
• Acts as an insulator to help regulate body temperature
 • Composition
o Collagen and elastin fibers
o Fat cells, also known as adipose tissue
o Blood vessels
o Sebaceous glands
o Nerve endings
o Hair follicle roots

II. Appendages of the Skin

• Skin-associated structures
• Includes the cutaneous glands, hair and hair follicles, and nails.

A. CUTANEOUS GLANDS
• Exocrine glands that release their secretions to the skin surface via ducts
• Fall into two groups: sebaceous glands and sweat glands
o Sebaceous glands
▪ Oil glands
▪ Found all over the skin, except on the palms of the hands
or the soles of the feet
▪ Ducts usually empty into hair follicles
▪ Produces sebum, a mixture of oily substances and
fragmented cells
• Is a lubricant responsible for keeping skin soft and
preventing hair from becoming brittle
o Sweat glands
▪ Also called sudoriferous glands
▪ Two types: eccrine and apocrine
• Eccrine glands
o Far more numerous and are found all over
the body
o Produce sweat, a clear secretion composed
of water, some salts, vitamin C, metabolic
wastes, and lactic acid
o Also part of body’s heat regulating
equipment
• Apocrine glands
o Confined to the axillary and genital areas of
the body only
o Larger than eccrine glands
o Ducts empty into hair follicles
o Secretion contains fatty acids and proteins
o Begin to function during puberty under the
influence of androgens
B. THE HAIR
• Scattered all over the body
• Serve minor protective functions

• Hair: flexible epithelial structure produced by hair follicles

o Each hair is made up of a central core called the medulla,
surrounded by a bulky cortex layer
• Root: part of hair enclosed in the follicle
• Shaft: part projecting from the surface of scalp or skin
• Hair pigment: made by melanocytes in the hair bulb; varying amounts of
melanin combine to produce different hair colors (blonde, brown, black, etc.)
• Papilla: provides blood supply to the matrix in the hair bulb

C. THE NAILS
• Scale-like modification of the epidermis that corresponds to the hooves or
claws of other animals
• Protect tips of fingers and toes from mechanical injury
• Increases ability of the fingers to pick up small objects
• The keratin in nails makes them hard but flexible
• Has many nerve endings, thus enhancing sensation in the fingertip
• Root: also known as germinal matrix
o skin beneath the fingernail
o extends deep into the finger
o produces most of the volume of the nail and nail bed
o does not have any melanocytes
o seen as a white, crescent shaped structure called the lunula
• Nail Bed: contains the blood vessels, nerves, and melanocytes; is the
surface covered by the actual fingernail
• Nail Plate: the actual fingernail, made up of translucent keratin; is pink due
to the blood vessels underneath the nail
• Eponychium: cuticle of the fingernail; situated between the skin of the
finger and the nail plate
• Perionychium: skin that overlies the nail plate on its side; also known as
the paronychial edge. Prone to hangnails, ingrown nails, and infections
called paronychia.
• Hyponychium: area between the nail plate and the fingertip
 Ailments and Disorders of the Integumentary System
1. Basal Cell Carcinoma
- A form of skin cancer that affects mitotically active stem cells in the stratum
basale of the epidermis
- Most common of all cancers in the United States
- Frequently found on the head, neck, arms, and back
- Caused by overexposure to UV rays, radiation, or arsenic
2. Squamous Cell Carcinoma
- A form of skin cancer that affects the keratinocytes of the stratum spinosum
- Commonly presents as lesions on the scalp, ears, or hands
- 2 out of 10 skin cancers in the United States are squamous cell carcinomas
- Removed through surgery and radiation
3. Melanoma
- A form of skin cancer characterized by the uncontrolled growth of
melanocytes
- Typically develops from a mole
- Most fatal of all skin cancers; difficult to detect before it spreads to other
organs
- Usually an asymmetrical patch of black and brown on the skin with uneven
borders and a raised surface
- Treated through surgical excision and immunotherapy
4. Eczema
- A common allergic reaction that manifests as dry, red, itchy patches of skin
that resemble rashes
- May be accompanied by swelling, flaking, and in severe cases, bleeding
- Symptoms are usually managed with moisturizers, corticosteroid creams, and
immunosuppressants.
5. Acne
- A skin disturbance that typically occurs on areas of the skin that are rich in
sebaceous glands (face and back)
- Commonly happens during the onset of puberty due to hormonal changes
- Hormones stimulate the release of sebum; the overproduction and
accumulation of sebum, along with keratin, can block hair follicles
- Produces a white bump that, when exposed to air, turns black (thus the
production of blackheads)
- Acne results from infection due to acne-causing bacteria (Propionibacterium
and Staphylococcus), leading to redness and swelling
6. Burns
- A skin injury resulting from damage due to intense heat, radiation, electricity,
or chemicals
- Results in the death of skin cells, leading to a massive loss of fluids
- Prone to bacterial infection
- First-degree burn: superficial; affects only the dermis; heals on its own within
a few days
- Second-degree burn: affects both the dermis and epidermis; results in
swelling and painful blistering; heals within several weeks
- Third-degree burn: fully extends into epidermis and dermis; destroys tissue,
affects nerve endings and sensory function; may appear white, red, or black;
requires medical attention
- Fourth-degree burn: even more severe; affects underlying muscle and bone.
Oddly less painful because the nerve endings are completely damaged; often
leads to amputation of the burned part
7. Scars and Keloids
- A scar is a collagen-rich skin formed after wound healing; occurs when the
skin fails to regenerate the original skin structure
- Overproduction of scar tissue leads to a formation of a raised hypertrophic
scar called a keloid
- Scars from acne and chickenpox, which have a sunken appearance, are called
atrophic scars.
8. Stretch Marks
- Results when the dermis is stretched beyond its limits of elasticity
- Usually results from rapid weight gain especially during puberty and pregnancy
- Initially reddish, but lighten over time
- Do not need to be treated other than for cosmetic reasons
9. Calluses
- Occurs when the basal stem cells in the stratum basale are triggered to divide
more often to increase the thickness of the skin at a point of abrasion to
protect the rest of the skin from damage
- Common example is when you wear shoes that do not fit well and are a
constant source of abrasion on your toes
- Can also form on fingers when subjected to constant mechanical stress, such
as long periods of writing, playing string instruments, etc.
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zXXVwQ&pbjreload=10
Prepared by:
Castillo, Ryne Ethan Dominic
Racelis, Criscela Ysabelle
Permalino, Joshua John
Arenas, Gerardo Louis