Yes, really. Cell phones can cause rashes. According to the British Association of Dermatologists doctors have began to see what they are calling “mobile phone dermatitis” – rashes on the ears and cheeks of prolonged cell phone users caused by an allergic reaction to nickel. Nickel is a metal commonly used in consumer products, especially jewelery and belt buckles, and is one of the most common causes of allergic contact dermatitis. The rash is purely due to the nickel coming into contact with the skin. Earlier this year a Brown University study tested 22 popular handsets from eight different manufacturers and found nickel in 10 of the devices. The British group is urging physicians to think about the possibility of mobile phone dermatitis in any patient with a ear/cheek rash that cannot otherwise be explained.
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Tags: cell phone, cheek, contact, dermatitis, Dermatology, ENT (Ear Nose Throat), mobile, nickel, phone, rash
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Dr. Steven Chang, the author of DailyDose, is a staff physician with Kosmix RightHealth. Dr. Chang practices Family Medicine at the University of California Davis Medical Center, where his medical interests include both pediatric and geriatric care, public health, gay and lesbian health, and sleep medicine. Dr. Chang trained at the Stanford University affiliated O'Connor Hospital, and was a research fellow at the National Institute of Health. He holds an M.D. from McGill University and a BA in Public Health from Johns Hopkins University.
November 3rd, 2008 at 9:05 am
Sir
I cannot understand when nickel is bad for our health, why in the mobile machine the manufacturer using nickel–what special activity nickel palys in mobile phone? if nickel is not essential then u please —advertise this slogan against mobile machine—it is harmful to our health
Nirmal Mukherjee
November 3rd, 2008 at 2:31 pm
Hi Nirmal – Nickel is not necessarily bad for our health. It’s a very common metal that is used in manufacturing because it’s relatively cost efficient and easy to shape. The problem is that some people just have an allergic reaction to it, like some people have allergies to latex, for example.