Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34881341›Full record

ArticleOrthopaedic journal of sports medicine2021

Health Conditions, Substance Use, Physical Activity, and Quality of Life in Current and Former Baseball Players.

Garrett S Bullock, Kristen F Nicholson, Brian R Waterman, Eric Niesen, Paul Salamh, Charles A Thigpen, Ellen Shanley, Laurie Devaney, Gary S Collins, Nigel K Arden and 1 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Orthopaedic journal of sports medicine, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Risk Factors and Injury Prevention in the Throwing Athlete.Arthroscopy, sports medicine, and rehabilitation · 2025
    Article
  2. Review
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Garrett S BullockDepartment of Orthopaedic Surgery, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA.
Kristen F NicholsonDepartment of Orthopaedic Surgery, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA.
Brian R WatermanDepartment of Orthopaedic Surgery, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA.
Eric NiesenHouston Astros Baseball Club, Houston, Texas, USA.
Paul SalamhKrannert School of Physical Therapy, University of Indianapolis, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA.
Charles A ThigpenATI Physical Therapy, Greenville, South Carolina, USA.
Ellen ShanleyATI Physical Therapy, Greenville, South Carolina, USA.
Laurie DevaneyDepartment of Kinesiology, College of Agriculture, Health, and Natural Resources, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut, USA.
Gary S CollinsCentre for Statistics in Medicine, Nuffield Department of Orthopaedics, Rheumatology, and Musculoskeletal Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
Nigel K ArdenDepartment of Orthopaedic Surgery, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA.
Stephanie R FilbayCentre for Sport, Exercise and Osteoarthritis Research Versus Arthritis, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundA comprehensive understanding of lifestyle (health conditions and substance use), health-related quality of life (HRQoL), flourishing (holistic representation of health), and physical activity can inform stakeholders (players, coaches, and clinicians) and help improve long-term health across the life span. PURPOSE: To describe health conditions (comorbidities or diagnoses), substance use, physical activity, HRQoL, and flourishing in current and former collegiate and professional baseball players and to assess the relationship between playing position and HRQoL/flourishing in former baseball players. STUDY

designDescriptive epidemiology study.

methodsEligible participants were those ≥18 years old with ≥1 season of collegiate or professional baseball experience. Participants completed a survey on health conditions (asthma, diabetes, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, and depression), substance use (tobacco, alcohol, and energy drinks), physical activity (International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Short Form), HRQoL (Veterans Rand 12-Item Health Survey [VR-12] physical and mental component scores), and flourishing (Flourishing Scale). Adjusted multivariable regressions were performed for HRQoL and flourishing.

resultsOverall, 260 baseball players opened the survey, and 214 (current players, 97; former players, 117) participated for an 82% response rate. Of the former players, 32% had hypertension or hypercholesterolemia. In addition, 26% of current players had used smokeless tobacco (median, 3 years; interquartile range [IQR], 1-5 years) as compared with 34% of former players (median, 15 years; IQR, 5-25 years). In addition, 14% of current players had used electronic cigarettes (median, 2 years; IQR, 0-4 years) as opposed to 3% of former (median, 3 years; IQR, 2-4 years). Energy drinks were consumed by 31% and 14%, respectively, of current and former players on at least a weekly basis. Current baseball players performed 8667 metabolic equivalents per week of physical activity as opposed to 3931 in former players. Pitching was associated with worse VR-12 Mental Component Scores (-5.0; 95% confidence interval, -9.0 to -1.0). Playing position was not related to VR-12 Physical Component Scores or flourishing in former baseball players.

conclusionThe similar smokeless tobacco prevalence between current and former baseball players suggests that they may start using tobacco products during baseball participation and continue after retirement. Similar reported HRQoL as compared with the general US population and high flourishing and physical activity levels suggest that baseball players may present with good musculoskeletal and psychological health.

Indexed as

electronic cigaretteenergy drinksphysical activityretired athletessmokeless tobacco

Identifiers

PMID34881341
PMCPMC8647246

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.