A New Zealand man who played eight hours of video games for four days in a row developed life-threatening blood clots so severe that doctors created a new condition: “gamer’s thrombosis.” The situation involving the 31-year-old PlayStation fan was picked as the case report of the year for 2013 by BioMed Central, a U.K. publisher of science news.

Doctors at Middlemore Hospital in Auckland reported that the young man sat on his bed for four days with his legs outstretched playing PlayStation games. On the second day, he developed pain and swelling in his left leg, but ignored it for two more days. By then, he had developed deep vein thrombosis, blood clots that can potentially break free, blocking circulation and causing death. It took several clot-busting drugs to save him. Other gamers should take heed, doctors say, and get up at least every few hours.

In Depth

- JoNel Aleccia