integumentary

• Integumentary system


  Skin and its appendages—hair, nails, and sweat and oil glands
• The integumentary system is the largest system of the body since the skin is considered to be the largest organ by mass
• Skin


  • Body's natural covering
  • Consists of all four types of tissue working together
• Skin layers


  • Epidermis (outer layer)
  • Dermis (inner layer, made up of connective tissue)
• Epidermis


  1. Living and dead cells arranged in specific layers

  2. As cells divide, creating newer cells, the older cells are pushed toward the surface, where they eventually die

  3. Dead cells constantly flake off and are replaced by living cells
• Epidermis


  • Contains living cells with pigment, which gives skin its colour
  • Has no blood vessels, so it depends on blood vessels in the dermis for its nutrients and oxygen
  • Contains sensory cells and a few nerve endings, which perceive sensations like pain and pressure
• Functions of skin


  • Protective covering of the body
  • Nerve endings protect the body by sensing heat, cold, pain, touch, and pressure stimulations
  • Regulates body temperature
  • Organ of elimination
• Observing the condition of the client's skin can tell you several things about the client
• The entire body, except the palms of the hands and the soles of the feet, is covered with hair
• Hair


  • Protects organs from dust, insects, and other foreign objects
  • Helps retain heat
• Nails


  • Protect the tips of fingers and toes
  • Help fingers pick up and handle small objects
  • Client's general state of health and nutritional status can be reflected by the condition of the nails
• Sweat glands


  • Help the body regulate temperature
  • Sweat consists of water, salt, and a small amount of waste
  • Sweat is secreted through the pores in skin, and the body is cooled as sweat evaporates
• Oil glands


  • Lie near hair shafts
  • Secrete an oily substance into the space near the hair shaft
  • Oil travels to the skin's surface, helping keep hair and skin soft and shiny and also inhibiting the growth of bacteria on the surface of skin