‘Toasted Skin Syndrome’ Warning For Laptop Users

Have you ever worked on your laptop computer with it sitting on your lap, heating up your legs? If so, you might want to rethink that habit.

Doing it a lot can lead to “toasted skin syndrome,” an unusual-looking mottled skin condition caused by long-term heat exposure, according to medical reports.

I have seen the results of overuse of heating pads and they are exactly the same as the *toasted skin* mottling. The person in question had been in a bad auto accident and used the heating pad obsessively for many months. When I saw her, it had already been some time since she did this, but the discoloration was still evident.

There is also some risk in overusing ice to treat pain. Leaving the ice on too long or using it obsessively can result in the body reacting by increasing the pain signals.

Heat is effective for about 15 minutes at a time. If you absolutely must use it longer, do not put it directly against the skin. Use it with some protection between heat and skin. A rice or flax seed pack is preferable to a heating pad simply because it naturally loses heat in 15-20 minutes.

For ice, leave it on until the area is numb, which happens relatively quickly. Then, take it off. You can use heat after ice to rewarm the area. Alternating heat and ice (ice first for 3 minutes, then heat for 5 minutes) creates a vascular pump by first driving blood into the tissue with ice, then using heat to bring blood to the surface, bringing with it various by-products of inflammation. This is effective for treating muscle spasms after injury. Minimum ice application only is best for the first 48 hours, then contrast (ice followed by heat) can be used. Limit these treatments to 3x-4x a day.

Some inflammation is essential to initiate healing in deep muscle trauma. I have been told by RNs that if ibuprofon is followed in 2 hours by acetaminophen, the two act on different parts of the brain for better pain relief. Consult a qualified medical practitioner for the dosage and to verify this. The information was given to me in regard to using less of each while still controlling pain.

I use the ibuprofen/acetominophin trick sometimes. But I already had a doctor tell me it was OK for me, as well as giving me the appropriate dosage for my size. So I don’t “recommend” others do anything.

I use a pillow for my laptop, so it’s not on my lap. You can also buy special-built cooling pads for underneath the laptop. I find the pillow puts the laptop at the right height so I can read in my lazy-boy recliner with my elbows on the armrests. And I don’t get too hot. You do need a pillow small enough that it doesn’t block the fan if it’s on the bottom of your laptop.

Both of your comments are sensible, IMO.

I learned about the ibuprofen/acetominophin trick when I asked an RN why acetominophin was in the codiene+ painkillers, because my experience had been that acetominophin did little to nothing for pain. That was when she told me how to use them.

Dosage is absolutely to be prescribed by someone who knows what they are talking about relative to each individual.

Only a kid, IMO, would be using a laptop on bare thighs. In many online videos, I have noticed young people wearing shorts almost every month of the year in every situation. I suppose it is fashion.

I do think one can use the Thermacare heat wraps against bare skin. I have, with no ill effects. They work via oxidation and it is a very low level of heat. I also will move the back heat belts around every once in awhile to catch a different area.

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