Cross-calibration of eight-polar bioelectrical impedance analysis versus dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry for the assessment of total and appendicular body composition in healthy subjects aged 21-82 years

Aim: To calibrate eight-polar bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) against dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) for the assessment of total and appendicular body composition in healthy adults. Research design: A cross-sectional study was carried out. Subjects: Sixty-eight females and 42 males aged 21-82 years participated in the study. Methods: Whole-body fat-free mass (FFM) and appendicular lean tissue mass (LTM) were measured by DXA; resistance (R) of arms, trunk and legs was measured by eight-polar BIA at frequencies of 5, 50, 250 and 500 kHz; whole-body resistance was calculated as the sum R of arms, trunk and legs. Results: The resistance index (RI), i.e. the height2/resistance ratio, was the best predictor of FFM and appendicular LTM. As compared with weight (Wt), RI at 500 kHz explained 35% more variance of FFM (Radj2 = 0.92 vs 0.57), 45% more variance of LTMarm(Radj2 = 0.93 vs 0.48) and 36% more variance of LTMleg (Radj2 = 0.86 vs 0.50) (p < 0.0001 for all). The contribution of age to the unexplained variance of FFM and appendicular LTM was nil or negligible and the RI x sex interactions were either not significant or not important on practical grounds. The percent root mean square error of the estimate was 6% for FFM and 8% for LTMarm and LTMleg. Conclusion: 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.