1,720,966 research outputs found
Raw bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) variables and physical fitness in semi-professional basketball players
No full textComparison of bioelectrical impedance analysis-derived phase angle in individuals with different weight status
Full text linkObjective: Obesity is characterized not only by an increase of fat mass but also by alterations in skeletal muscle. Bioimpedance analysis (BIA)-derived phase angle (PhA) may provide specific information on the inherent characteristics of fat-free mass, and is widely used as an index of poor nutritional status. The aim of this study was to describe whether and to what extent PhA varies depending on age, sex, and body mass index (BMI) in individuals with different weight status. Methods: We selected 1877 participants for this retrospective study (two weight status groups): 983 individuals with obesity (age 40 ± 13.9 y; BMI 39.5 ± 7.2 kg/m2) and 894 controls (age 40 ± 13.3 y; BMI 24.6 ± 2.7 kg/m2). Anthropometry and PhA at 50 kHz for the whole body were performed in all participants. Results: PhA was greater in men than in women, although a decline of PhA was observed with age, which was linear in women and occurred in men after 40 y of age. On the other hand, no significant differences were observed with increasing BMI in either sex; lower values might be observed when BMI >50 kg/m2. Conclusions: A more detailed appraisal of BIA-derived PhA in obesity is reported in the present study, providing basic data that might be taken into consideration in prevention and clinical nutrition. Further studies are needed to explore differences of PhA in individuals with different weight status
A height-weight formula to measure body fat in childhood obesity
No full textBACKGROUND: The assessment of body composition is central in diagnosis and treatment of paediatric obesity, but a criterion method is not feasible in clinical practice. Even the use of bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) is limited in children. Body mass index (BMI) Z-score is frequently used as a proxy index of body composition, but it does not discriminate between fat mass and fat-free mass. We aimed to assess the extent to which fat mass and percentage of body fat estimated by a height-weight equation agreed with a BIA equation in youths with obesity from South Italy. Furthermore, we investigated the correlation between BMI Z-score and fat mass or percentage of body mass estimated by these two models. METHODS: One-hundred-seventy-four youths with obesity (52.3% males, mean age 10.8 ± 1.9) were enrolled in this cross-sectional study. Fat mass and percentage of body fat were calculated according to a height-weight based prediction model and to a BIA prediction model. RESULTS: According to Bland–Altman statistics, mean differences were relatively small for both fat mass (+ 0.65 kg) and percentage of body fat (+ 1.27%) with an overestimation at lower mean values; the majority of values fell within the limits of agreement. BMI Z-score was significantly associated with both fat mass and percentage of body fat, regardless of the method, but the strength of correlation was higher when the height-weight equation was considered (r = 0.82; p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: This formula may serve as surrogate for body fat estimation when instrumental tools are not available. Dealing with changes of body fat instead of BMI Z-score may help children and parents to focus on diet for health. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13052-022-01285-8
Controlling Nutritional Status (CONUT) score and the risk of mortality or impaired physical function in stroke patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Full text linkAims: The Controlling Nutritional Status (CONUT) score is a tool for assessing the risk of malnutrition (undernutrition) that can be calculated from albumin concentration, total peripheral lymphocyte count, and total cholesterol concentration. CONUT score has been proposed as a promising prognostic marker in several clinical settings; however, a consensus on its prognostic value in patients with stroke is lacking. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to evaluate the relationship between CONUT score and clinical outcomes in patients with stroke based on all current available studies. Data synthesis: Systematic research on PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science from inception to February 2023 was performed on the association between CONUT score and clinical outcomes in patients with stroke. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses were followed. Methodological quality was evaluated using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale quality assessment tool. Pooled effect estimation was calculated by a random-effect model. Through the initial literature search, 15 studies (all high-quality) including 16 929 patients were found to be eligible and analysed in the meta-analysis. A significant risk of malnutrition (in most studies defined by a CONUT score ≥5) was directly associated with mortality, higher risk of poor functional outcome according to the modified Rankin Scale and total infection development. Evidence was consistent for acute ischaemic stroke and preliminary for acute haemorrhagic stroke. Conclusion: CONUT score is an independent prognostic indicator, and it is associated with major disability and infection development during hospitalisation. Prospero id: CRD42022306560
Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis (BIA)- Derived Phase Angle in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review
No full textPhase angle (PhA), a directly-measured bioelectrical impedance analysis variable, is suggested to be a proxy of body cell mass as well as extracellular/intracellular water ratio, and is related to cellular integrity and functions. The aim of this systematic review was to evaluate PhA in healthy youths in relation to sex, age, weight status, physical fitness, and sports activities. A systematic literature search (preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses criteria) until January 2022 was performed using PubMed, Embase, Scopus, and Web of Science regarding studies on PhA in healthy children and adolescents 4-18 years of age. Quality was assessed according to the National Institute of Health. After removing duplicates and studies not fulfilling the inclusion criteria, 22 cross-sectional and 1 longitudinal were considered appropriate. As for quality, 14 articles were rated fair and 9 good. Ten studies found that PhA increases with age: the increase was more marked after puberty, whereas changes in younger subjects are by far less defined. A clear sex difference was found in adolescents, likely due to pubertal development. Limited evidence suggests that PhA increases in participants with very high BMI. Limited data were reported on physically active youths without convincing findings. Positive associations of PhA with physical fitness and fat-free mass were found in few studies. In conclusion, partial and limited evidence suggests that changes in PhA over the first 2 decades of life reflect modification in body composition and fat-free mass composition. Further studies are needed for confirming PhA as a relevant marker of nutritional status in youths
Perceived Difficulties in Physical Tasks and Physical Fitness in Treatment- and Non-Treatment-Seeking Youths with Obesity
No full textYouths with obesity are more likely to experience physical and psychosocial distress which strongly limits physical activity, with consequences on the quality of life. Most evidence of lower physical fitness and physical activity levels has been reported in treatment-seeking samples, while few data are available in community samples. Our aim was to assess whether perceived difficulties in physical tasks and physical fitness performance differed between treatment- and non-treatment-seeking youths with obesity, enrolled from a hospital (H) and a school (S). Three hundred fifty-one youths (269 from H and 82 from S) were enrolled. Sports participation, sedentary habits and perceived difficulties in physical tasks were assessed by interview. Six-minute walk test (SMWD) and long jump (LJ) were performed. BMI Z-score, sedentary time and perceived difficulties were higher in H vs. S. In addition, youths from H scored worse in SMWD and LJ. For the same BMI Z-score, the perceived difficulties and physical fitness were poorer in the H compared to the S group. The setting (H) was the stronger predictor of perceived difficulties and lower performance. Our findings underline that physical aspects imposed by obesity are more evident in treatment-seeking youths. Counseling related to perceived difficulties in physical tasks and performance is useful to treat youth with obesity with appropriate and personalized modalities
Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis-Derived Phase Angle and Body Composition Are Predictors of Health-Related Fitness in Children and Adolescents with Obesity
No full textThere is little evidence in children and adolescents with obesity of the relationships between muscle strength/cardiorespiratory fitness (both components of health-related fitness = HRF) and body composition. Body composition and HRF were studied in 281 children and adolescents with obesity to explore their mutual relationship and to identify the predictors of HRF. By performing a bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA), the fat-free mass (FFM) and percentage of body fat (%BF) were calculated, and the phase angle (PhA) was recorded. Handgrip strength (HGS), the standard broad jump (SBJ), and five broad jumps (FIVEBJ) were considered for the assessment of muscle strength, and the six-minute walking distance (SIXMWD) for cardiorespiratory fitness. The BMI Z-score was slightly higher in boys, and the %BF was higher in girls, with no difference in the FFM. HGS, the SBJ, and FIVEBJ were greater in the male sex. After controlling for sex, HGS was associated with the FFM, and with height, weight, and absolute BMI. On the contrary, the SBJ and FIVEBJ were negatively associated with adiposity, with a weak relationship with the FFM. The SIXMWD was only poorly related to height, the BMI Z-score, and the waist-to-height ratio. These results were confirmed with a multiple regression analysis. HGS, the SBJ, and FIVEBJ were higher in the first compared to the third tertile of the PhA in both sexes. The PhA also remained a consistent predictor of HGS, the SBJ, and FIVEBJ in a multiple regression analysis. In conclusion, the following predictors have been identified for HRF: the FFM for the isometric strength of the upper limbs and adiposity indicators for the SBJ and FIVEBJ. The PhA emerged as a proxy index of muscle strength
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
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