{"id":765332,"date":"2026-09-09T19:06:27","date_gmt":"2026-09-09T19:06:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/765332\/"},"modified":"2026-09-09T19:06:27","modified_gmt":"2026-09-09T19:06:27","slug":"doctors-issue-warning-after-children-suffer-toasted-skin-syndrome-from-overusing-devices","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/765332\/","title":{"rendered":"Doctors issue warning after children suffer \u2018toasted skin syndrome\u2019 from overusing devices"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Medical professionals have warned of a rise in children<\/a> suffering skin<\/a> reactions from resting electronic devices against bare skin.<\/p>\n

It follows a pre-teen boy being diagnosed with erythema ab igne (EAI) \u2013 also known as toasted skin syndrome \u2013 after keeping a laptop<\/a> on his stomach for up to eight hours daily.<\/p>\n

EAI causes a net-like rash<\/a> through prolonged exposure to low-level heat. <\/p>\n

Typically seen in adults using hot water bottles or heating pads, it is becoming increasingly common among children using digital gadgets.<\/p>\n

Medics<\/a> said early recognition in paediatric cases helps avoid unnecessary tests and prevents misdiagnoses.<\/p>\n

Writing in BMJ Case Reports, Dr Mara Znagoveanu of University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust said the patient went to a children\u2019s emergency department with “spontaneous bruising”.<\/p>\n

\"ErythemaErythema ab igne (EAI) or toasted skin syndrome causes a net-like rash through prolonged exposure to low-level heat. (Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Neither the boy nor his parents could pinpoint the cause, and he was otherwise well with no trauma, fever, or weight loss. Normal scans and blood tests led to his discharge.<\/p>\n

Two weeks later, the patient returned as the rash worsened, becoming tender and peeling.<\/p>\n

While medics asked about common heat sources, further questioning revealed the boy was being home-schooled and used a laptop for learning.<\/p>\n

He reported resting the device on his stomach for up to eight hours a day, usually while it was charging.<\/p>\n

The boy was eventually diagnosed with EAI.<\/p>\n

Dr Znagoveanu said: \u201cAs more commonly reported in adults, EAI may be overlooked in children, especially when the source of heat is less obvious than the traditional sources such as hot water bottles and heating pads.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe increasing use of electronic devices, particularly during home schooling, has emerged as an under-recognised cause of EAI in paediatric populations\u201d<\/p>\n

She added that EAI might be misdiagnosed in children, leading to \u201cunnecessary investigations\u201d such as blood tests or scans.<\/p>\n

\"EAIEAI is a net-like rash caused by long-term exposure to low level heat (Getty\/iStock)<\/p>\n

EAI is usually reversible, with the rash improving over weeks to months once the heat source is removed.<\/p>\n

However, in some cases it can lead to persistent hyper-pigmentation.<\/p>\n

A number of months later, during a phone consultation, the boy\u2019s father told doctors<\/a> that the rash had eventually disappeared.<\/p>\n

Dr Znagoveanu said: \u201cThere are currently no formal paediatric guidelines for EAI, and diagnosis remains clinical, based on history and characteristic findings.<\/p>\n

\u201cA limitation of this case is the lack of in-person follow- up, with resolution confirmed by the patient\u2019s family via telephone call.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis case highlights the importance of considering EAI in children presenting with reticulated rashes, particularly in the context of increasing electronic device use.<\/p>\n

\u201cEarly recognition through targeted history-taking can prevent misdiagnosis and avoid unnecessary investigations.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":765333,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[59,102,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-765332","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-gb","tag-health","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/765332","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=765332"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/765332\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/765333"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=765332"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=765332"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=765332"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}