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Validation of bioelectrical impedance analysis for total body water assessment against the deuterium dilution technique in Asian children

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 65, pages 1321–1327 (2011)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Background/Objectives:

To develop and cross-validate bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) prediction equations of total body water (TBW) and fat-free mass (FFM) for Asian pre-pubertal children from China, Lebanon, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand.

Subjects/Methods:

Height, weight, age, gender, resistance and reactance measured by BIA were collected from 948 Asian children (492 boys and 456 girls) aged 8–10 years from the five countries. The deuterium dilution technique was used as the criterion method for the estimation of TBW and FFM. The BIA equations were developed using stepwise multiple regression analysis and cross-validated using the Bland–Altman approach.

Results:

The BIA prediction equation for the estimation of TBW was as follows: TBW=0.231 × height2/resistance+0.066 × height+0.188 × weight+0.128 × age+0.500 × sex−0.316 × Thais−4.574 (R2=88.0%, root mean square error (RMSE)=1.3 kg), and for the estimation of FFM was as follows: FFM=0.299 × height2/resistance+0.086 × height+0.245 × weight+0.260 × age+0.901 × sex−0.415 × ethnicity (Thai ethnicity =1, others = 0)−6.952 (R2=88.3%, RMSE=1.7 kg). No significant difference between measured and predicted values for the whole cross-validation sample was found. However, the prediction equation for estimation of TBW/FFM tended to overestimate TBW/FFM at lower levels whereas underestimate at higher levels of TBW/FFM. Accuracy of the general equation for TBW and FFM was also valid at each body mass index category.

Conclusions:

Ethnicity influences the relationship between BIA and body composition in Asian pre-pubertal children. The newly developed BIA prediction equations are valid for use in Asian pre-pubertal children.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to acknowledge Connie Wishart for her work in the analysis of urine samples. This work was supported by the International Atomic Energy Agency (RAS/6/050). AL contributed to data collection in China, data analysis and drafted the manuscript. APH contributed to the design, interpretation of data and revising the manuscript. NMB contributed to the design, interpretation of data and revising the manuscript. MK contributed to the analysis of samples and revising the manuscript. GM, LN, TPT KK, and MNI were the principal investigators in their respective countries and contributed to data collection and interpretation and revising the manuscript. BKP contributed to data collection and interpretation in Malaysia and revising the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Student Nutrition, National Institute for Nutrition and Food Safety, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing, China

    A Liu & G Ma

  2. Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

    A Liu, N M Byrne & A P Hills

  3. Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture and Food Sciences, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon

    L Nasreddine

  4. Department of Science and Technology, Food and Nutrition Research Institute, Manila, Philippines

    T P Trinidad

  5. Institute of Nutrition, Mahidol University at Salaya, Nakhon Pathom, Thailand

    K Kijboonchoo

  6. Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

    M N Ismail & B K Poh

  7. Institute of Nutrition Sciences, Kagawa Nutrition University, Saitama, Japan

    M Kagawa

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  1. A Liu
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Correspondence to A P Hills.

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Liu, A., Byrne, N., Ma, G. et al. Validation of bioelectrical impedance analysis for total body water assessment against the deuterium dilution technique in Asian children. Eur J Clin Nutr 65, 1321–1327 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2011.122

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2011.122

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