Scheduled for Free Communication: Body Composition Measures on Youth and Young Adults, Friday, April 11, 2008, 2:30 PM - 3:45 PM, Convention Center: 202C


Comparison of Methods to Assess Abdominal Adiposity

Michelle Gray1, Melissa Powers1, Ro Di Brezzo2, Barbara Shadden2 and Inza L. Fort2, (1)University of Central Oklahoma, Edmond, OK, (2)University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR

Significance. Waist circumference (WC) and waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) are field tests that are commonly used to indicate abdominal adiposity and risk for cardiovascular disease. A newer test, sagittal abdominal diameter (SAD), may also be a good predictor of abdominal adiposity and disease risk, but extensive research in this area is lacking. In addition, a standard method of measuring SAD has not been established. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the difference between different methods of assessing SAD. The second purpose was to determine which field test is the best predictor of abdominal adiposity assessed by DXA. Design. Participants were 75 women between the ages of 29 and 91 years (M = 58.3 years). WC, hip circumference, SAD with the legs straight, SAD with the knees bent, and a total body DXA scan were conducted for each participant. All measurements were taken on the same day. WHR was calculated as the ratio of the WC to the hip circumference. Android fat is the DXA measurement used as an indicator of abdominal adiposity. To answer the first research question, a paired samples t-test was conducted to examine differences between the two SAD measures. Results. Results indicate that there were no differences between measuring SAD with the legs straight or with knees bent (t = -0.64, p = .53). In addition, the two measures of SAD were highly correlated (r = .99). Due to these results, the SAD measurement with legs straight will be used for further analysis. To determine which field test was the best predictor of abdominal adiposity; a multiple regression analysis was conducted for each predictor (WC, SAD, and WHR). Although all field tests were significant predictors of abdominal adiposity, SAD (R2 = .82) and WC (R2 = .79) emerged as the best predictors. A second multiple regression analysis with both WC and SAD entered as predictors was conducted in order to examine the contributions of SAD and WC to the prediction of abdominal adiposity. When their unique contributions were examined, SAD contributed 7%, while WC only contributed 3.5% to the prediction model. These results indicate that both WC and SAD are good predictors of abdominal adiposity as assessed by DXA. SAD may be a slightly better choice if an abdominal caliper is available for use.
Keyword(s): aging/older adult issues, obesity issues, research

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