PCR Tech and IT retail, distribution and vendor news
Despite their name, laptops should not be left on top of your lap for too long, doctors have warned.
In a paper published in the Pediatrics journal, Andreas Arnold, MD and Peter Itin MD, of University Hospital Basel in Switzerland, describe seeing ten cases of rashes caused by notebook PCs since 2004. The youngest sufferer was a 12-year-old boy.
The child developed the condition, known scientifically as ‘erythema ab igne’, on his left thigh. It was caused by the heat from his laptop, which, according to BBC News, he had been playing games on for hours.
The doctors describe the rash as being caused by “prolonged exposure to a heat or infrared source”.
“In laptop-induced erythema ab igne, the localization on the thighs and asymmetry are characteristic. The heat originates from the optical drive, the battery, or the ventilation fan of the computer,” the report said.
