RESUMEN
Skin serves as interface between inner aand outer environment, and acts a a mechanical barrier. Changes in its characteristics may lead to a higher pathogenicity, less defense capacity, or both. Diabetes mellitus is a heterogeneous group of chronic hyperglycemic disorders, considered a syndrome rather than a simple disease. Complications by diabetes are mostly associated with the chronicity of the disease and very little information exists about its early pathological processes. Animal models are considered very useful for the study of early diabetes. Wistar rats with lloxan induccced diabetes were used in a way to study the progresive effects of diabetes mellitus on the skin epithelium. Five animals were sacrificed at 7 days (Phase I) and five others at 26 days (Phase II) after the comprovation of hyperglycemic state. Animals not inyected with alloxan were used as control. Histometric and stereologic methods were used for the tissue analysis. Our results allow us to observe that nevertheless progressive thickness decrease is observed with the progress of the disease, epithelial thickness is observed decreased very early in the course of the diabetes. Our results suggest that, although diabetes is a chronic disease, and many of its complications are related to the chronicity, it is reasonable to think about ddeficiency in the capacity of acting as a barier for the skin epithelium even in early phases of the disease. Professionals must be aware about patients with high risk for diabetes development.