Von Frey Hair
Encyclopedia
A von Frey hair is a type of aesthesiometer designed in 1896 by Maximilian von Frey
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These hairs are made from nylon filaments of varying diameter. The hairs are to be pressed against the skin with enough force so that the hair buckles and forms a U-shape. Given that the force required for this is assumed to be constant, these hairs can be used to apply a very accurate force on specific areas of the skin, thus making von Frey hairs a possible diagnostic, research, and screening tool.
von Frey hairs are readily used to study skin areas with normal responsiveness, as well as hyper- or hyposensitive areas.
Maximilian von Frey
Maximilian Ruppert Franz von Frey was an Austrian-German physiologist who was born in Salzburg. He received his doctorate from the University of Leipzig in 1877, and subsequently worked at Carl Ludwig's Physiological Institute in Leipzig...
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These hairs are made from nylon filaments of varying diameter. The hairs are to be pressed against the skin with enough force so that the hair buckles and forms a U-shape. Given that the force required for this is assumed to be constant, these hairs can be used to apply a very accurate force on specific areas of the skin, thus making von Frey hairs a possible diagnostic, research, and screening tool.
von Frey hairs are readily used to study skin areas with normal responsiveness, as well as hyper- or hyposensitive areas.