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Utilization of arm span instead of height in body mass index calculation in elderly subjects
Authors Yilmaz Aykent O , Tufan F , Bahat G , Karan MA
Received 25 December 2015
Accepted for publication 31 December 2015
Published 7 March 2016 Volume 2016:11 Pages 285—286
DOI https://doi.org/10.2147/CIA.S103151
Checked for plagiarism Yes
Editor who approved publication: Dr Richard Walker
Ozlem Yilmaz, Fatih Tufan, Gulistan Bahat, Mehmet Akif Karan
Department of Geriatrics, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, Fatih, Istanbul, Turkey
We read with interest the article by Falsarella et al.1 The authors investigated the relationship between body composition and frailty in community-dwelling elderly individuals aged 65 years or older. The findings of this study have considerable importance in terms of evolving preventive, diagnostic, and treatment measures for frailty in the elderly population. We would like to make a comment on this well-designed study. For calculating body mass index (BMI), using arm span instead of height would be more accurate.2 Conditions such as kyphosis and asymptomatic vertebral fractures are commonly seen in elderly individuals (especially in frail ones), and calculation of BMI using height may result in overestimation of BMI in these circumstances. In this way, subjects with low BMI may be considered to have normal BMI, and this may result in underestimation of malnutrition, which is an important contributor to frailty phenotype.
View original paper by Falsarella and colleagues.
Dear editor
We read with interest the article by Falsarella et al.1 The authors investigated the relationship between body composition and frailty in community-dwelling elderly individuals aged 65 years or older. The findings of this study have considerable importance in terms of evolving preventive, diagnostic, and treatment measures for frailty in the elderly population. We would like to make a comment on this well-designed study. For calculating body mass index (BMI), using arm span instead of height would be more accurate.2 Conditions such as kyphosis and asymptomatic vertebral fractures are commonly seen in elderly individuals (especially in frail ones), and calculation of BMI using height may result in overestimation of BMI in these circumstances. In this way, subjects with low BMI may be considered to have normal BMI, and this may result in underestimation of malnutrition, which is an important contributor to frailty phenotype.
Disclosure
The authors report no conflicts of interest in this communication.
References
Falsarella GR, Gasparotto LP, Barcelos CC, et al. Body composition as a frailty marker for the elderly community. Clin Interv Aging. 2015;10:1661–1666. | ||
Hirani V, Mindell J. A comparison of measured height and demi-span equivalent height in the assessment of body mass index among people aged 65 years and over in England. Age Ageing. 2008;37(3):311–317. | ||
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