WEDNESDAY, April 16 (HealthDay News) -- New research has discovered that people with low blood levels of vitamin D were found to have a higher incidence of peripheral arterial disease (PAD), potentially dangerous blockages in the leg arteries.

The study of nearly 4,900 American adults found more than double the incidence of PAD among those with the lowest levels of vitamin D compared to those with the highest levels.

The finding was presented Wednesday at the American Heart Association's Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology annual conference, in Atlanta.

One previous study found an association between low vitamin D levels and heart disease, said study author Dr. Michal Melamed, an assistant professor of medicine, epidemiology and population health at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City.

"But in that study they found only eight cases of PAD," she said. "In our analysis, we have more than 400 people with PAD."

Vitamin D is made when the body is exposed to sunlight. It is converted to a hormone that makes bones stronger. A severe deficiency can cause rickets in children. The link to blood vessel problems has emerged in recent years.

"The underlying mechanism isn't quite known," Melamed said. "But the study definitely speaks to the fact that it is an association that needs to be further explored."

Current guidelines recommend a vitamin D intake of 400 International Units a day for people aged 50 and older. In addition to sunlight, other sources of the vitamin are salmon, sardines, cod liver oil, fortified milk and some fortified cereals.

Exposure to sunlight "always calls for a balance," Melamed said, because overexposure raises the risk of skin cancer. "I would recommend about 10 to 15 minutes of direct exposure, then putting on sun block," she said.

Supplements aren't recommended by Dr. Thomas J. Wang, an assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital, who led the earlier study.

"There have been a number of very intriguing population findings, but we still don't know if supplementation will affect the risk of cardiovascular disease," Wang said. "A clinical trial would be needed to see if supplementation could avert risk. We know that the things to prevent vitamin D deficiency include sunlight and proper diet."

But Dr. Denise Teves, an endocrinologist who is an assistant professor of medicine at the Medical College of Wisconsin, said a case could be made for vitamin D supplements for some people.

"I recommend supplements for some patients who come to me with metabolic bone disease," she said. "Most have insufficient vitamin D."

Existing guidelines might fall short of what is needed for some people, Teves said.

"The current guidelines do call for 400 units a day," she said. "But in the last two or three years, many endocrinologists have been recommending at least 800 units a day. I have seen many students in Wisconsin in the wintertime with low vitamin D levels."

It's best to consult a doctor about taking large amounts of a vitamin D supplement, Teves said.

More information

A fact sheet on vitamin D is available from the U.S. Office of Dietary Supplements.

WEDNESDAY, April 16 (HealthDay News) -- A review of past research shows cheaper, removable splints are as safe and effective as traditional plaster casts for treating minor wrist fractures in children.

But one U.S. orthopedic expert disagrees, saying that kids may be tempted to take off the split at inappropriate times and cause further damage to themselves.

"Yes, you can treat a child's buckle fracture with a splint, but I don't," Dr. Leon Benson, spokesman for the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), said in a prepared statement. "In my experience, a child under 10 is not going to keep a splint on, and who is going to take responsibility for that fact -- the doctor. And, given that fact, what parent wants to sit on pins and needles waiting for it to happen when a safe plaster cast insures it won't?"

Minor wrist, or buckle, fractures are common among children. They often occur when a child falls on an outstretched hand. Traditionally, physicians treat these incomplete bone fractures by covering the wrist to just below the elbow in a plaster cast for a short time, often about three weeks.

Of the 10 reviewed studies that compared plaster casting to removable splints in 827 children with wrist fractures, none reported a bone deformity in any patient. The review, conducted by British researchers, was published in the current issue of The Cochrane Library.

"There are minor, or buckle, fractures of the wrist, particularly in toddlers and preschool infants, which are currently being over-treated with a plaster cast and clinic follow-up," lead investigator Alwyn Abraham, a consultant orthopedic surgeon in pediatrics at the Leicester Royal Infirmary, said in a prepared statement. "Provided these are accurately diagnosed in an emergency department, these minor fractures can be treated with a removable splint. Removal can be done at home with no further follow-up."

Plaster casts that parents could remove at home also performed as well as traditional casts, and parents preferred these more, the researchers said. Children and parents also preferred the removable Futura-brand splint, which was less expensive and less restrictive.

Benson agreed with the reviews conclusions in theory, but not in practice.

"My experience is that the younger child's pain decreases dramatically more quickly with plaster casting than a splint, and adolescents in splints often remove them around their friends, because they find them embarrassing," said Benson, who is also an associate clinical professor of orthopedic surgery at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. "With a plaster cast, everyone can sleep at night; nothing can make that cast fall off. Yes, having a plaster cast for a few weeks is a hassle in ways, though it is possible to cover it and bathe or shower. But for the whole child and the whole family, it is a more reasonable treatment."

Benson also said the economic implication of the findings could give parents no option that offered them peace of mind: "A review like this could be used, in the U.K. system, to force people to use cheaper splinting methods of treatment rather than have a choice for plaster-casting for their child for reasons beyond narrow measures of clinical efficacy. This would be unfortunate."

More information

Safe Kids Worldwide has safety tips to prevent childhood injuries  .

(HealthDay News) - Neck pain has a variety of causes, often muscle strain or tension.

Here are some other common triggers, courtesy of the U.S. National Library of Medicine:

• Sitting at or bending over a desk for long periods, especially with poor posture.
• Reading, working or watching TV with poor posture.
• Working at a computer screen that is too high or too low.
• Sleeping in an awkward position.
• Injuring the neck during exercise by twisting or straining the muscles.
• Medical conditions, including arthritis, fibromyalgia, meningitis or a herniated disk.