Eight-polar BIA offers accurate estimates of total and appendicular body composition. The attractive hypothesis that eight-polar BIA is influenced minimally by age and sex should be tested on larger samples including younger individuals.

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Objective: To establish the accuracy of an eight-polar tactile-electrode impedance method in the assessment of total body water (TBW). Design: Transversal study. Setting: University department. Subjects: Fifty healthy subjects (25 men and 25 women) with a mean (s.d.) age of 40 (12) y. Methods: TBW measured by deuterium oxide dilution; resistance (R) of arms, trunk and legs measured at frequencies of 5, 50, 250 and 500 kHz with an eight-polar tactile-electrode impedance-meter (InBody 3.0, Biospace, Seoul, Korea). Results: An algorithm for the prediction of TBW from the whole-body resistance index at 500 kHz (height 2 =R 500 where R is the sum of the segmental resistances of arms, trunk and legs) was developed in a randomly chosen subsample of 35 subjects. This algorithm had an adjusted coefficient of determination (r 2 adj ) of 0.81 (P < 0.0001) and a root mean square error (RMSE) of 3.6 l (9%). Cross-validation of the predictive algorithm in the remaining 15 subjects gave an r 2 adj of 0.87 (P < 0.0001) and an RMSE of 3.0 l (8%). The precision of eight-polar BIA, determined by measuring R three times a day for five consecutive days in a fasting subject, was 2.8% for all segments and frequencies. Conclusion: Eight-polar BIA is a precise method that offers accurate estimates of TBW in healthy subjects. This promising method should undergo further studies of precision and its accuracy in assessing extracellular water and appendicular body composition should be determined. Sponsorship: Modena and Reggio Emilia University.

A caloric restriction associated to changes in eating behavior and constant physical activity, is able to reduce gestational weight gain and related pregnancy complications in obese women.

The combination of episodic dysfunction and permanent deficit could depend on the variety of functions of calcium channels and their distribution in the nervous system.

Objective: To measure body water distribution and to evaluate the accuracy of eight-polar bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) for the assessment of total body water (TBW) and extracellular water (ECW) in severe obesity. Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: Obesity clinic. Subjects: In all, 75 women aged 18-66 y, 25 with body mass index (BMI) between 19.1 and 29.9 kg/m 2 (ie not obese), 25 with BMI between 30.0 and 39.9 kg/m 2 (ie class I and II obese), and 25 with BMI between 40.0 and 48.2 kg/m 2 (ie class III obese). Methods: TBW and ECW were measured by 2 H 2 O and Br dilution. Body resistance (R) was obtained by summing the resistances of arms, trunk and legs as measured by eight-polar BIA (InBody 3.0, Biospace, Seoul, Korea). The resistance index at a frequency of x kHz (RI x ) was calculated as height 2 /R x . Results: ECW : TBW was similar in women with class III (4673%, mean7s.d.) and class I-II obesity (4573%) but higher than in nonobese women (3973%, Po0.05). In a random subsample of 37 subjects, RI 500 explained 82% of TBW variance (Po0.0001) and cross-validation of the obtained algorithm in the remaining 38 subjects gave a percent root mean square error (RMSE%) of 5% and a pure error (PE) of 2.1 l. In the same subjects, RI 5 explained 87% of ECW variance (Po0.0001) and cross-validation of the obtained algorithm gave a RMSE% of 8% and a PE of 1.4 l. The contribution of weight and BMI to the prediction of TBW and ECW was nil or negligible on practical grounds. Conclusions: ECW : TBW is similar in women with class I-II and class III obesity up to BMI values of 48.2 kg/m 2 . Eight-polar BIA offers accurate estimates of TBW and ECW in women with a wide range of BMI (19.1-48.2 kg/m 2 ) without the need of population-specific formulae. Sponsorship: Progetti di Ricerca Corrente, Istituto Auxologico Italiano.

SF, BIA and BOD-POD provide valid and reliable measurements of FFM. Our results suggest that the SenseWear armband is an acceptable device to accurately measure REE in healthy subjects. Its characteristics have the potential to reduce measurement times and make the SenseWear armband useful for epidemiological studies.

PA is higher in patients with anorexia nervosa than age-matched controls both before and after treatment, and is associated with treatment dropout.