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. 2019 Dec 12;16(24):5066.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph16245066.

Classic Bioelectrical Impedance Vector Reference Values for Assessing Body Composition in Male and Female Athletes

Francesco Campa  1 , Catarina Matias  2 , Hannes Gatterer  3 , Stefania Toselli  1 , Josely C Koury  4 , Angela Andreoli  5 , Giovanni Melchiorri  5 , Luis B Sardinha  2 , Analiza M Silva  2
Affiliations

Classic Bioelectrical Impedance Vector Reference Values for Assessing Body Composition in Male and Female Athletes

Francesco Campa et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

Bioimpedance standards are well established for the normal healthy population and in clinical settings, but they are not available for many sports categories. The aim of this study was to develop reference values for male and female athletes using classic bioimpedance vector analysis (BIVA). In this study, 1556 athletes engaged in different sports were evaluated during their off-season period. A tetrapolar bioelectrical impedance analyzer was used to determine measurements of resistance (R) and reactance (Xc). The classic BIVA procedure, which corrects bioelectrical values for body height, was applied, and fat-free mass, fat mass, and total body water were estimated. In order to verify the need for specific references, classic bioelectrical values were compared to the reference values for the general male and female populations. Additionally, athletes were divided into three groups: endurance, velocity/power, and team sports. In comparison with the general healthy male and female populations, the mean vectors of the athletes showed a shift to the left on the R-Xc graph. Considering the same set of modalities, BIVA confidence graphs showed that male and female endurance athletes presented lower body fluids, fat mass, and fat-free mass than other sets of modalities. This study provides BIVA reference values for an athletic population that can be used as a standard for assessing body composition in male and female athletes.

Keywords: BIVA; R–Xc graph; confidence ellipses; phase angle; tolerance ellipses.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Hand and foot electrode positioning.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Mean impedance vectors with the 95% confidence ellipses for athletes and the general healthy populations. The Hotelling T2 test results are included.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Scattergrams of the individual (A,C) and mean (B,D) impedance vectors, divided by sports categories and plotted on the new tolerance ellipses, for male (A,B) and female (C,D) athletes. The Hotelling T2 test results are included.
Figure 4
Figure 4
New 50%, 75%, and 95% tolerance ellipses of the entire male athlete population and for the endurance, velocity/power, and team-sports categories with the single athletes’ vectors. r = correlation coefficient between R/H and Xc/H. ICW/ECW: intracellular/extracellular water ratio.
Figure 5
Figure 5
New 50%, 75%, and 95% tolerance ellipses of the entire female athlete population and for the endurance, velocity/power, and team-sports categories with the single athletes’ vectors. r = correlation coefficient between R/H and Xc/H.
Figure 6
Figure 6
The 95% confidence ellipses for the mean impedance vectors of elite male soccer players [12], volleyball players [14], cyclists [15], and for the general population [19] plotted on the new reference tolerance ellipses.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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