Latest news with #injuryPrevention
Wall Street Journal
27-05-2025
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
‘Ballistic' Review: Building a Competitive Edge
Today's professional basketball players are capable of athletic feats that would have been unthinkable a few decades ago. Think Stephen Curry's extraordinary shooting range or Nikola Jokić's sheer mastery of the game. But there's one way in which NBA players are regressing compared to their predecessors: They're getting injured more often. In the recently completed NBA regular season, the number of games players lost to injury or illness was the highest since at least 2005 (excluding one Covid-19-ravaged season), according to basketball injury tracker Jeff Stotts. The reasons are varied, but one is that professional basketball (as well as other pro sports) focuses less on preventing injuries than on treating them. In this way, U.S. sports mirrors much of the American healthcare system, which remains painfully reactive. Marcus Elliott, a California-based physician, has spent decades trying to get injury prevention incorporated into the playbook of elite athletics. Henry Abbott tells Dr. Elliott's captivating story in 'Ballistic: The New Science of Injury-Free Athletic Performance.' Dr. Elliott grew up in a rural area of Northern California and had a free-range childhood, with lots of time for camping, fishing and horseback riding. While in high school he hyperextended his knee playing football, which left him laid up for 4½ months in a full-length cast. Reading a medical journal devoted to sports and exercise spurred him to want to understand injury prevention, only to discover upon arriving at college that the subject wasn't taught. He nonetheless found a like-minded professor, who nurtured his interest in prevention, and later enrolled at Harvard Medical School, though he chafed at its rigidity. The New England Patriots, and later the Seattle Mariners, eventually hired Dr. Elliott to focus on injury prevention. But neither organization was a great fit for him, owing to hidebound attitudes among the players, trainers and broader management. His experience with the Mariners was particularly sour. When he told one of the team's oft-injured pitchers that bench-press workouts could aggravate his shoulder and elbow, the player responded (with the strength coach standing next to him), 'I don't like people who try to figure things out.' Dr. Elliott left the team convinced that 'baseball is definitely the dumbest sport.'
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Yahoo
Firework Safety: Pennsylvanians encouraged to celebrate carefully this Memorial Day
PENNSYLVANIA (WTAJ) — Memorial Day weekend means that celebrations will be taking place across the country, but the Office of State Fire Commissioner is reminding Pennsylvanians that fireworks have the capability to kill or seriously injure a person if you're not careful. A 2023 report on firework safety showed that there were eight firework-related deaths and over 9,000 injuries. Children under 15 accounted for nearly one-third of them. Fireworks also caused over 31,000 fires in 2022, which caused over $109 million in damages. All this to say that the best thing to do this holiday weekend is to be safe and careful. Here are some ways to stay safe when using fireworks this weekend: Avoid alcohol and drugs Supervise children Prepare for emergencies Handle fireworks properly Maintain a safe distance Dispose of fireworks safely Keep pets safe Only use fireworks that are legal Pennsylvania Attorney General urges Congress to pass youth drug prevention bill 'Fireworks are capable of causing serious injury or death and must be treated with extreme caution. It is everyone's responsibility to keep themselves and their fellow Pennsylvanians safe. We also want to remind anyone planning to purchase and display fireworks to adhere to local laws regarding fireworks usage, and to read and follow all manufacturer safety guidelines,' State Fire Commissioner Thomas Cook said. Anyone who lights fireworks inappropriately or while impaired can be fined, first offenses can be up to $500. Here are some places and ways fireworks cannot be set off: Private property or on public property without the express permission of the owner. Within, directed at, or directed from a vehicle or building. Directed at another person. While under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Within 150 feet of a building or vehicle, whether or not the building or vehicle is owned by the user of the consumer fireworks. The greatest danger of wildfires in Pennsylvania occurs during the spring months of March, April, and May, and the autumn months of October and November. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
