What factors are associated with premature death among professional baseball players in Japan?

Hideyuki Kanda, Satoshi Tsuboi, Masayoshi Tsuji, Takeyasu Kakamu, Yayoi Mori, Takehito Hayakawa, Tetsuhito Fukushima

Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, School of Medicine, Yokohama City University, Yokohama, Japan.
Department of Hygiene and Preventive Medicine, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan.

DOI: 10.4236/health.2013.54100                

Abstract

The aim of this study is to clarify factors related to premature death among Japanese professional baseball players by a case-control analysis. The subjects are two matching groups of 622 Japan Professional Baseball (JPB) league players, those deceased and those surviving. Cases and controls are matched by birth year. All players debuted on the first string between 1934 and 2003, and are listed in The Official Baseball Encyclopedia of Japan. To compare means and frequencies of characteristics between deceased and surviving groups, t-tests and chi-square tests were used. A logistic regression analysis was assessed contributions of each independent variable on death. Significant differences between deceased and surviving players were observed in this study; deceased players had higher body mass indexes and longer careers. Furthermore, logistic regression analysis confirmed that body mass index and career length were statistically significant determinants of death for baseball players. This is the first report to examine factors of death for professional baseball players except employing data attained from Major League Baseball.

Keywords

Factors of Death; Professional Baseball Player; Body Mass Index; Career Length

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

References

[1]	Saase, J.L., Noteboom, W.M. and Vandenbroucke, J.P. (1990) Longevity of men capable of prolonged vigorous physical exercise: A 32-year follow up of 2259 participants in the Dutch eleven cities ice skating tour. British Medical Journal, 301, 1409-1411. doi:10.1136/bmj.301.6766.1409
[2]	Lee, I.M., Hsieh, C.C. and Paffenbarger Jr., R.S. (1995) Exercise intensity and longevity in men. The Harvard Alumni Health Study, JAMA, 274, 1132-1133.
[3]	Nocon, M., Hiemann, T., Müller-Riemenschneider, F., Thalau, F., Roll, S. and Willich, S.N. (2008) Association of physical activity with all-cause and cardiovascular mortality: A systematic review and meta-analysis. European Journal of Cardiovascular Preventive Rehabilitation, 15, 239-246. doi:10.1097/HJR.0b013e3282f55e09
[4]	Sarna, S., Sahi, T., Koskenvuo, M. and Kaprio, J. (1993) Increased life expectancy of world class male athletes. Medicine and Science in Sports Exercise, 25, 237-244. doi:10.1249/00005768-199302000-00013
[5]	Sarna, S., Kaprio, J., Kujala, U.M. and Koskenvuo, M. (1997) Health status of former elite athletes. The Finnish Experience Aging, 9, 35-41.
[6]	Schnohr, P. (1971) Longevity and causes of death in male athletic champions. Lancet, 2, 1364-1365. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(71)92377-4
[7]	Waterbor, J., Cole, P., Delzeli, E. and Andjelkovitz, D. (1988) The mortality experience of major league baseball players. New England Journal of Medicine, 318, 1278- 1280. doi:10.1056/NEJM198805123181917
[8]	Abel, E.L. and Kruger, M.L. (2005) The longevity of Baseball Hall of Famers compared to other players. Death Studies, 29, 959-963. doi:10.1080/07481180500299493
[9]	Bjarkman, P.C. (2005) Diamonds around the globe: The encyclopedia of international baseball. Greenwood Press, Westport.
[10]	Nippon Professional Baseball (2004) The Official Baseball Encyclopedia. 4th Edition, Baseball Magazine Sha Co., Ltd, Tokyo.
[11]	Eve, B., Wild, P., Massin, N., Meyer, J.P., Sierra, C.O., Fontana, J.-M., Benamghar, L., Mur, J.-M., Ravaud, J.-F., Guillemin, F. and Chau, N. (2008) Association of physical job demands, smoking and alcohol abuse with subsequent premature mortality: A 9-year follow-up population-based study. Journal of Occupational Health, 50, 31-40. doi:10.1539/joh.50.31
[12]	Tanno, K., Sakata, K. and Japan Collaborative Cohort Study for Evaluation of Cancer (2007) Psychological factors and mortality in the Japan Collaborative Cohort Study for Evaluation of Cancer (JACC). Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention, 8, 113-122.
[13]	Mare, R.D. (1990) Socioeconomic careers and differential mortality among older men in the United States. In: Vallin, J., D’Souza, S. and Palloni, A., Eds., Measurement and Analysis of Mortality: New Approaches, Clarendon Press, Oxford, 362-387.