Body composition assessment in athletes: Comparison of a novel ultrasound technique to traditional skinfold measures and criterion DXA measure

Gomes, A.C., Landers, G.J., Binnie, M.J., Goods, P.S.R., Fulton, S.K. and Ackland, T.R. (2020) Body composition assessment in athletes: Comparison of a novel ultrasound technique to traditional skinfold measures and criterion DXA measure. Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport, 23 (11). pp. 1006-1010.

Abstract

Objectives

This investigation compared ultrasound and skinfolds as measures of body fat for athletes, relative to dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry.

Design

Fifty-six well-trained athletes from various sports participated in a cross-sectional study.

Methods

The participants attended one testing session, where total body fat mass was measured using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, and subcutaneous adipose tissue was measured using brightness-mode ultrasound and skinfolds with callipers. The ultrasound and skinfold measures were correlated independently against standardised fat mass from dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry.

Results

The correlation between standardised fat mass and sum-of-eight (Σ8) sites ultrasound (r = 0.959, p < 0.001), and with sum-of-seven (Σ7) sites skinfolds (r = 0.911, p < 0.001), were both high positive correlations. In the lowest quartile by fat proportion, the correlation between standardised fat mass and Σ8 ultrasound (r = 0.811, p < 0.001) was a high positive correlation, whilst the correlation with Σ7 skinfolds (r = 0.652, p = 0.011) was a moderate positive correlation. In the highest quartile by fat proportion, the correlation between standardised fat mass and Σ8 ultrasound (r = 0.847, p < 0.001) was a high positive correlation, whilst the correlation with Σ7 skinfolds (r = 0.591, p = 0.026) was a moderate positive correlation.

Conclusions

Ultrasound and skinfolds are both very good methods to accurately assess body composition in athletes, relative to dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. However, ultrasound delivered consistently more accurate results, throughout a broad athletic spectrum.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Publisher:	Elsevier Ltd.
Copyright:	© 2020 Sports Medicine Australia.
URI:	http://researchrepository.murdoch.edu.au/id/eprint/65396

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