Human skin temperature response to absorbed thermal power

Devices including ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging probes can 'overheat' and burn human skin unless they are carefully designed and tested. An empirical study was performed to determine how much thermal power the skin can absorb without raising skin temperature to the damage point. Steady-state power and temperature measurements were recorded from seven healthy adults. Small skin areas, 1.8 to 25 cm2, were heated. The data indicates a 'safe' absorption level of approximately 40 mW/cm2. Near the overheating point, skin temperature increases approximately 0.8 degrees Celsius for each additional 10 mW/cm2 of absorbed power.© (1997) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.