Young baseball pitchers may suffer serious injuries

Youth baseball leagues should limit the number of pitches to help pitchers avoid serious injury, according to a report in Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, the American College of Sports Medicine journal.

As it is, about half of 9- to 12-year-old pitchers feel pain after the game, said researchers, who tracked 298 pitchers over two years in Birmingham, Ala. Those who threw more than 75 pitches a game were more likely to complain of pain in the shoulder or elbow.

The report’s author, epidemiologist Stephen Lyman, said elbow pain could signal a more severe problem, such as damage to growth plates of the bone; shoulder pain may indicate muscle injury.

Hiking machines recalled

ICON Health and Fitness is recalling about 7,500 hiking exercise machines that can overheat and cause a fire.

The recall involves the NordicTrack Adventurer (model number NTHK9990), the NordicTrack Teton (NTHK2249) and the ProForm TrailRunner (PFHK9990) sold between April 2000 and December 2001. Machines already repaired have a sticker reading “KIT” near the model-number label on the machine.

Consumers should unplug their machines and call (800) 999-3756 for a free repair kit or service appointment.