Correlation of three bioelectric method with skin fold thickness in body fat measurement in indian obese

Obesity is one of the most common disorders and major health concern worldwide. There are many standard procedures to assess obesity. Though body mass index is the most commonly used method, there are many other methods like bioelectric impedance analysis (BIA), waist to hip ratio, near -infrared measurement, Skin fold thickness, under water weighing, dual energy x-ray absorptiometry, Air displacement plethosmography, and Computed tomography. The main objective of the study was to establish a correlation between the BIA and skin fold thickness measurement so that BIA can also be routinely used in clinical practice for body fat measurement. All healthy obese and overweight college students and faculty of well known University who volunteered to participate were recruited in to the study. The cross-sectional study included 30 participants using sample of convenience and the assessment was performed by a qualified physical therapist. The instruments used in this study were Bioelectric impedance analyzer (OMRON, HBF – 361), Bioelectric impedance analyzer (TANITA, BC-571), Bioelectric impedance analyzer (OMRON, HBF-302), Weighing machine, Skin fold caliper. There was a positive correlation between skin fold thickness (SKF) and other methods of body impedance analyzer (BIA) while estimating the body fat percentage. The correlation of SKF with LBIA, CBIA and HBIA was high with r=0.069, 0.796, 0.859 respectively. Hand BIA has the highest correlation with SKF compared to the other two BIA methods; therefore HBIA can be used for body fat analysis in clinical practice with greater accuracy and reliability.