Topical foams are an attractive and promising delivery system for cosmetic, pharmaceutical and medical applications due to their beneficial properties, ease of application and enhanced patients’ acceptability/compliance. Below the recent developments of topical foams for cosmetic and dermal applications are reviewed, classification based on foam formulation is provided and recent assessment methods of important physical parameters of topical foam are reviewed. In spite of the increasing number of studies devoted to topical foams for dermal applications, the majority of studies have assessed the stability and structure of foam in contact with solid nonporous surfaces. Improved understanding of the destabilisation mechanisms of such foams in contact with porous surfaces, such as skin or skin-like membranes still remains elusive. The review ends with recent developments in dermal foams; considerable attention has been paid in developing novel foams for the treatment of chronic skin diseases and disorders, particularly those involving skin infections.

局部用泡沫由于其有益的特性，易于使用和增强的患者可接受性/依从性，是用于化妆品，制药和医疗应用的有吸引力且有希望的传递系统。在下文中综述了用于化妆品和皮肤应用的局部泡沫的最新发展，提供了基于泡沫配方的分类，并综述了局部泡沫的重要物理参数的最新评估方法。尽管致力于皮肤用局部泡沫的研究越来越多，但大多数研究已经评估了与固体无孔表面接触时泡沫的稳定性和结构。与此类多孔泡沫与诸如皮肤或类皮肤膜之类的多孔表面接触的去稳定机理的更好的理解仍然是难以捉摸的。综述以真皮泡沫的最新发展为结尾。在开发用于治疗慢性皮肤疾病和病症，特别是涉及皮肤感染的那些疾病的新型泡沫方面，已经引起了相当大的关注。