Relative Accuracy of Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis for Assessing Body Composition in Children With Severe Obesity

Abstract

Objectives: The accuracy of different bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) devices for assessing body composition in children with obesity is unclear. We determined the relative accuracy of 2 BIA devices compared to dual x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) in obese and severely obese children. Methods: We measured body composition in a cross-sectional study of 78 obese children by a handheld single frequency tetrapolar BIA device (Omron), a stationary multifrequency octopolar BIA device (InBody 370) and DXA. Intermethod agreement was assessed by intraclass correlations, paired t tests, and Bland-Altman analyses. Results: Participants (37% female, age 14.8 ± 2.7 years) had mean (±standard deviation) body mass index of 36.7 ± 7.5 kg/m2, body fat percentage of 46.4% ± 5.2%, and appendicular lean mass of 22.5 ± 6.0 kg by DXA. Intraclass correlations with DXA for body fat percentage were 0.39 and 0.87 for single frequency tetrapolar and multifrequency octopolar BIA devices, respectively. The single frequency tetrapolar BIA underestimated body fat percentage by 5.5% ± 2.9% (P < 0.0001). Differences between the multifrequency octopolar BIA and DXA for body fat percentage (−1.1% ± 2.8%) and appendicular lean mass (−0.3 ± 1.4 kg) were small, and 95% limits of agreement were approximately ±5%. Conclusions: BIA machines vary in relative accuracy in measuring body composition in children who are obese and severely obese. The multifrequency octopolar BIA device accurately estimated body fat percentage and appendicular lean mass relative to DXA and has the advantage of point of care performance.

Health-Related Factors in Rural and Urban Mexican Adolescents from the State of Jalisco: The HELENA-MEX Study

“…A bioelectric impedance analysis (BIA) device (BIA, Inbody 120, InBody Co., Ltd. Seoul, Korea) with tetrapolar-8-point-tactile electrodes was used to measure BC. Each device had two different frequencies (20 and 100 kHz) for impedance measurement in five body segments (the four extremities and the trunk) and has shown a good relative accuracy for assessing BC in children [21].…”

Body composition assessment after pediatric liver transplant

“…Furthermore, the algorithms for determining body composition and water volumes programmed into the MF‐BIA device are not in the public domain, and thus, we cannot be certain that they are appropriate to our study population; mismatch between algorithm/equation development and population applications can contribute to error in estimates. Although MF‐BIA has previously been validated against DXA by Lim et al and Khan et al, and our findings demonstrate high agreement with ADP in pediatric liver transplant recipients, further studies should confirm that MF‐BIA devices and its algorithms are broadly applicable across all pediatric clinical populations 38,39 . Lastly, we underestimated the degree to which the emotional status of the patients would interfere with measurements; some patients were not open to measurement by ADP, and not all patients agreed to the entire protocol.…”

Association of body fat distribution and metabolic syndrome with the occurrence of colorectal adenoma: A case‐control study

“…The Inbody 220 machine used for BIA measurement in this study detected fine sections of the body (left/right arm, left/right leg, trunk) separately by multiple frequencies, which makes it more precise than traditional BIA machines and it is able to assess the waist‐to‐hip ratio of the body. Many studies have demonstrated the accuracy of the Inbody machine in measuring body composition compared with other methods, such as dual X‐ray absorptiometry 23,24 or computed tomography 25 …”