Frictional dermatitis from touchscreen contact

Frictional dermatitis occurs after prolonged or repetitive physical contact of the skin with a surface and usually presents as a pediatric or occupational dermatosis. A 10-year-old girl presented with painful erythematous, edematous plaques, and macules on the fingertips within 24 h of playing a game requiring her fingers to repeatedly slide across a touch screen for about 45 min. The repetitive frictional pressure and contact over a short period of time between the fingertips and the touch screen contributed to the onset of dermatitis in this case.