The Benefits of Utilizing Total Body Composition as a Predictor of Cardiorespiratory Fitness Based on Age: A Pilot Study

Physical fitness predicts post-esophagectomy complications after chemoradiotherapy: a pilot study

BACKGROUND

Esophagectomy following neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy or definitive chemoradiotherapy has been shown to yield favorable oncological outcomes in patients with locally advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. However, postoperative complications are frequent and can adversely affect patient survival. This study aimed to identify physical fitness factors across multiple domains associated with major postoperative complications.

METHODS

This study enrolled patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma who were treated with neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy or definitive chemoradiotherapy and underwent esophagectomy between 2020 and 2022. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was conducted to identify the factors associated with major postoperative complications. Additionally, a tree-based learning process was employed to assess all the variables influencing major complications.

RESULTS

A total of 142 esophageal cancer patients who underwent esophagectomy were screened. Of these, 72 eligible patients were included in the study, and 29 (40.2%) experienced major postoperative complications. In the full model, factors such as low body weight, low body mass index, low peak oxygen consumption (V̇O2peak), low V̇O2peak/skeletal muscle mass (SMM), low appendicular skeletal muscle index (ASMI), and low ASMI-V̇O2peak/SMM product (AV̇P) were found to be significantly associated with major postoperative complications. However, in the parsimonious model, only low AV̇P (P < 0.01) was associated with major complications. Additionally, AV̇P, EqO2nadir, and hand grip strength emerged as the key predictors of major post-esophagectomy complications in the tree-based learning analysis, which showed a sensitivity of 0.448, specificity of 0.977, and accuracy of 76.4%, with false negative and false positive rates of 55.2% and 2.3%. AV̇P alone yielded similar results.

CONCLUSIONS

Patients with low AV̇P, high EqO2nadir, and low HGS are at a very high risk of experiencing major postoperative complications, with low AV̇P showing the strongest correlation. Preoperative physical fitness screening can help identify high-risk patients and guide appropriate perioperative management.

Body Composition and Its Outcomes and Management in Multiple Sclerosis: Narrative Review

Background: There is emerging interest in obesity and its prevalence, outcomes, and management in people with multiple sclerosis (MS). Body mass index (BMI) is the traditional marker of obesity in MS, whereas body composition, inclusive of specific body tissue compartments (e.g., fat, bone, and muscle), is often overlooked despite its relevance. Objective: This narrative review (a) underscored the use and utility of dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) as an accurate and reliable measure of body composition; (b) thematically analyzed and synthesized the current evidence regarding body composition (using DEXA); and (c) determined gaps to be addressed in future research. Methods: The structure and reporting of this narrative review followed the guiding criteria outlined in the Scale for the Assessment of Narrative Review Articles (SANRA). The relevant literature for this narrative review was identified via a PubMed search utilizing combined search terms such as 'body composition' and 'multiple sclerosis'. The identified research was then organized by the authors into major themes and sub-themes. The articles described within the narrative review were based on saturation of the identified themes and sub-themes. Results: Three major themes were identified, namely (1) comparison of body composition between people with MS and non-MS controls (2 meta-analyses); (2) examination of the relationships between body composition and a range of outcomes (14 cross-sectional studies); and (3) interventions that report and/or target body composition in MS (11 clinical trials). Conclusions: This narrative review mapped the existing evidence regarding body composition in MS, and posits body composition as a novel, informative, and targeted concept for this population. The narrative review underscores the importance of randomized controlled trials that focus on body composition as a significant and modifiable outcome. Such research could improve the understanding of obesity and poor body composition in MS and identify useful clinical recommendations for diagnosis and management.

Selected somatic parameters and body composition as predictors of cardiorespiratory fitness among Polish adolescents aged 11-14

The aim of the study was to verify whether selected somatic parameters and components of body composition were significant predictors of cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) among a potentially healthy Polish population of adolescents aged 11-14 years. The cross-sectional study was conducted on a group of 375 subjects (164 girls, and 211 boys). A 20 m shuttle run test (20 m SRT) was used to assess CRF. The total number of rounds was taken into account. Basic somatic parameters were measured: body mass (BM), body height (BH), waist circumference (WC), hip circumference (HC), body mass index (BMI), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR), and body composition components: body fat percentage (FM%), fat mass (FM kg), total body water (TBW), fat-free mass (FFM). Statistical analyses included basic statistical measures (mean and standard deviation) and Spearman rank correlation coefficient. Multiple linear regression analysis was performed to detect significant predictors of CRF. In each proposed model, the dependent variable was the number of rounds, and the independent variables were selected somatic parameters and components of body composition. More than half (65%) of the subjects had an average or lower level of CRF, and 35% of the population presented a good or above good level of CRF. The study showed a statistically significant negative correlation between BM, FM%, FM kg, HC, WC, BMI, WHR, WHtR and the number of laps in the total sample. The strongest correlation in the group of girls was noted for age (r = 0.34) and in the group of boys for FM% (r = - 0.52 ). Each regression model presented proved to be statistically significant, and the significant predictors of CRF in the group of girls were age ( R 2 = 16%) and FM% ( R 2 = 6%). In the group of boys, the significant predictors of CRF were WHtR ( R 2 = 8%) and age ( R 2 = 2%). Estimating body fat distribution is useful in assessing cardiorespiratory fitness, and this in turn indicates its usefulness in preventive screening of school-aged adolescents.

The Relationship between Body Composition and ECG Ventricular Activity in Young Adults

This study aimed to determine the correlation between body composition (measured as weight, body mass index, and body fat percentage (BFP)) and electrocardiographic ventricular parameters (the QT and TQ intervals and the ratios between the electrical diastole and electrical systole (TQ/QT) and between the cardiac cycle and electrical diastole (RR/TQ), both for uncorrected and corrected intervals) in a sample of 50 healthy subjects (age interval 19-23 years, mean age 21.27 ± 1.41 years, 33 women and 17 men). Subjects' measurements were performed with a bioimpedancemetry body composition analyzer and a portable ECG monitor with six leads. Starting from the correlations obtained between the investigated continuous variables, we performed a standard linear regression analysis between the body composition parameters and the ECG ones. Our results revealed that some of our regression models are statistically significant (p < 0.001). Thus, a specific part of the variability of the dependent variables (ECG ventricular activity parameters for corrected QT intervals) is explained by the independent variable BFP. Therefore, body composition influences ventricular electrical activity in young adults, which implies a differentiated interpretation of the electrocardiogram in these situations.