Toasted Skin Syndrome

These days, laptops are quite common... people use them everywhere from airports, to restaurants etc. Well, Doctors have warned that balancing your laptop on your knees could be bad for your skin. The heat generated by laptops (they can reach up to 52 degrees celsius!) can cause 'toasted skin syndrome' - a nettle sting-like rash that can cause permanent discolouration and, in rare cases, cancer. (See pic below).

This used to be common in the days before central heating, when people huddled around open fires and electric heaters to stay warm. In one recent case, a 12-year-old boy developed a sponge-patterned skin discolouration on his left thigh after playing computer games for a few hours every day for several months.

And, in very rare cases, it can cause damage leading to skin cancers, said the Swiss researchers, Andreas Arnold and Peter Itin, of the University Hospital Basel.

'Toasted skin syndrome' can also affect bakers, silversmiths and others whose jobs involve being exposed to heat.

There are also reports of it being caused by prolonged use of heat pads to soothe sporting injuries.

Major computer manufacturers including Apple, Hewlett Packard and Dell warn in user manuals against placing laptops on laps or exposed skin for extended periods because of the burns risk.

The researchers advise anyone who is concerned about the syndrome to place their laptop carry case under the computer, to shield the body from the heat generated.

Other simple options include resting the machine on a desk or table.

This is not the first time the machines have been subject to a health alert, with warnings that frequent use could hamper male fertility.

Working with a laptop balanced on the thighs raises the temperature of sperm by up to 3C - enough to trigger fertility problems.

Dr Yefim Sheynkin, who led the research at the Sate University of New York and Stony Brook, warned that repeated warming over a period of years could cause irreversible damage.