UF is teeming with brilliant people working on cutting-edge technology that saves lives, reveals mysteries and solves problems. We’re here to share the latest in UF’s advancements, research and studies.
Take me out to the ball game
A UF study has found that baseball players in the South are susceptible to more injuries. The region’s warm weather allows for year-round baseball, which leads to throwing-arm overuse.
The study, according to UF News Center, shows that college baseball pitchers in the South are at a 5.5 percent higher risk for tearing a ligament in their elbow, an injury that primarily plagues pitchers. Former high school baseball pitchers in southern states are also 6.2 percent more likely to tear the ligament than former pitchers in northern states.
Of the 58 injuries they found in collegiate pitchers, 40 occurred in the Southeastern Conference, and 18 occurred in the Big Ten conference.
Got milk?
According to a UF study, vitamin D may decrease pain and improve function in obese people with osteoarthritis, the most common form of arthritis.
The study, according to UF News Center, indicated that obese individuals who suffer from osteoarthritis and have high vitamin D levels could walk, balance and rise better than obese participants with lower vitamin D levels. This suggested a correlation between obesity and vitamin D levels for tasks such as standing from a seated position.
Researchers analyzed blood samples for vitamin D levels from a racially diverse group of 256 middle-aged and older adults. Among the 126 obese participants, 68 were vitamin D-deficient while only 29 of the 130 non-obese participants were deficient.
Alcohol, death and taxes
UF Health researchers found that increasing state alcohol taxes can prevent fatal alcohol-related car crashes. In the study, according to UF News Center, they discovered these crashes declined 26 percent in Illinois after a 2009 increase in alcohol tax was instituted.
There was a 22-percent reduction in crashes involving alcohol-impaired drivers and a 25-percent decrease with extremely drunk drivers.
The research team used records of fatal crashes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration from January 2001 to December 2011. They looked at the 104 months before the tax was enacted and the 28 months after it was enacted to see whether the effects of the tax change differed according to a driver’s age, gender, race and blood alcohol concentration at the time of a fatal motor vehicle crash.
[A version of this story ran on page 9 on 4/7/2015]
