Child's Mysterious Skin Condition Traced Back to How He Uses a Laptop
Doctors say the heat-related rash is increasingly seen in children who use electronic devices, and early recognition can prevent unnecessary tests.
- Doctors warn of rising "Toasted skin syndrome" in children, following the diagnosis of a pre-teen boy with erythema ab igne , a net-like rash caused by prolonged exposure to low-level heat from electronic devices.
- Writing in BMJ Case Reports, Dr Mara Znagoveanu of University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust noted that while typically seen in adults using hot water bottles, the condition is increasingly common among youngsters using electronic devices.
- The boy developed a net-like rash after resting his charging laptop on his stomach for up to 8 hours a day, initially presenting with "spontaneous bruising" before doctors identified the actual cause.
- Early identification helps avoid "unnecessary investigations" such as blood tests or scans, Znagoveanu noted, as the condition is usually reversible within months once the heat source is removed.
- The increasing use of electronic devices, particularly during home schooling, has emerged as an under-recognized cause of EAI, though experts warn chronic exposure may rarely result in persistent pigmentation or malignant transformation.
13 Articles
13 Articles
Child's mysterious skin condition traced back to how he uses a laptop
When a boy with a strange honeycomb pattern on his stomach was brought into the University Hospitals of Leicester emergency department, nursing staff suspected a case of spontaneous bruising.Continue ReadingCategory: Imaging & Diagnostics, Medical Innovations, Body and MindTags: Laptop, Skin, Burns, Diagnosis
A Tween Boy's Rash Perplexed Doctors. Then They Looked At His Laptop
Many of us – especially those prone to period or chronic pain – will have experienced that familiar mottled rash from using a hot water bottle on repeat.But when a tween boy began to experience a similar mark on his abdomen, without the use of hot water bottles or heated pads, doctors were perplexed. The rash was accompanied by bruising, which he’d had for a week – and neither the boy nor his parents could think of a likely trigger, according to…
Experts have warned of the danger of this increasingly common practice.
Some people use their laptop for hours, while it is on their legs or belly. However, the heat of the device can change the skin, in the worst case even in the long term, warn pediatricians and describe the unexpected case of a boy.
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