A Comparative Study of High-Frequency Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis and Dual-Energy X-ray Absorptiometry for Estimating Body Composition

• Published in: Life (Basel, Switzerland) Vol. 12; no. 7; p. 994
• Main Authors: Yi, Youngseok, Baek, Ji Yeon, Lee, Eunju, Jung, Hee-Won, Jang, Il-Young
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Basel MDPI AG 04.07.2022; MDPI
• Subjects: Accuracy; Adhesives; bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA); Bioelectricity; Body composition; Body fat; Body mass; Body mass index; Body size; Comparative studies; Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry; dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA); Electrodes; Fat-free body mass; Frequency analysis; high-frequency bioelectrical impedance analysis (HF-BIA); Impedance; Magnetic resonance imaging; Males; muscle mass; Musculoskeletal system; Nutritional status; Physical fitness; Sarcopenia; Software; Variance analysis; Working groups; United States > US
• ISSN: 2075-1729; 2075-1729
• DOI: 10.3390/life12070994

Though bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) is a favorable tool for assessing body composition to estimate nutritional status and physical fitness, such as sarcopenia, there are accuracy issues. Hence, high-frequency (HF) BIA equipment uses an additional frequency of 2 and 3 MHz and has been developed as a commercial model. However, there are no studies validating the accuracy and safety of HF-BIA. Therefore, this study aims to assess the validity of HF-BIA in analyzing body composition relative to dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA). Appendicular lean mass (ALM), fat-free mass (FFM), and percentage of body fat (PBF) were assessed by HF-BIA and DEXA in 109 individuals; 50.5% (n = 55) were males. The average age and body mass index (BMI) were 43.4 ± 14.7 years and 25.5 ± 6.7 in males and 44.9 ± 14.1 years and 24.0 ± 6.4 in females, respectively. The HF-BIA results showed a high correlation with the DEXA results for assessing ALM (standard coefficient beta (β) ≥ 0.95), FFM (β ≥ 0.98, coefficient of determinations (R2) ≥ 0.95), and PBF (β ≥ 0.94, R2 ≥ 0.89). Body composition measured by HF-BIA demonstrated good agreement with DEXA in Korean adults.