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B H Cornish

Publications and source records attributed to B H Cornish.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Comparison of whole body and segmental bioimpedance methodologies for estimating total body water.

We compared the whole body (WB) and segmental bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) methodologies in a group of healthy adults (n = 25). It has been suggested that the segmental methodology may overcome the difficulty in generating a single algorithm to predict total body water (TBW) in all groups whether healthy or not. We measured TBW, using D2O dilution, and WB and segmental BIA parameters. Cole-Cole analysis was used to determine the impedance at the characteristic frequency (Zc). The correlation between TBW (by D2O dilution) and segmental BIA measures (multiple regression, r = 0.90, p < 0.001, SEE = 3.1 L) was not significantly higher than the correlation between TBW (D2O dilution) and WB BIA measures (simple regression, r = 0.85, p < 0.001, SEE = 3.6 L). Others have observed this "lack of improvement" in a group of healthy subjects. The true value of the segmental BIA methodology may lie in applications involving groups with altered distributions of segmental and compartmental fluid.

Adult↗

Early diagnosis of lymphedema in postsurgery breast cancer patients.

Lymphedema is an accumulation of lymph fluid in the limb resulting from an insufficiency of the lymphatic system. It is commonly associated with surgical or radiotherapy treatment for breast cancer. As with many progressively debilitating disorders, the effectiveness of treatment is significantly improved by earlier intervention. Multiple frequency bioelectrical impedance analysis (MFBIA) previously was shown to provide accurate relative measures of lymphedema in the upper limb in patients after treatment for breast cancer. This presentation reports progress to date on a three-year prospective study to evaluate the efficacy of MFBIA to predict the early onset of lymphedema in breast cancer patients following treatment. Bioelectrical impedance measurements of each upper limb were recorded in a group of healthy control subjects (n = 50) to determine the ratio of extracellular limb-fluid volumes. From this population, the expected normal range of asymmetry (99.7% confidence) between the limbs was determined. Patients undergoing surgery to treat breast cancer were recruited into the study, and MFBIA measurements were recorded presurgery, at one month and three months after surgery, and then at two-month intervals for up to 24 months postsurgery. When patients had an MFBIA measure outside the 99.7% range of the control group, they were referred to their physician for clinical assessment. Results to date: Over 100 patients were recruited into the study over the past two years; at present, 19 have developed lymphedema and, of these, 12 are receiving treatment. In each of these 19 cases, MFBIA predicted the onset of the condition up to four months before it could be clinically diagnosed. The false-negative rate currently is zero. The study will continue to monitor patients over the remaining year to accurately ascertain estimates of specificity and sensitivity of the procedure.

Adult↗

Bioimpedance: is it a predictor of true water volume?

Bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) has been reported to be insensitive to changes in water volumes in individual subjects. This study was designed to investigate the effect on the intra- and extracellular resistances (Ri and Re) of the segments of subjects for whom body water was changed without significant change to the total amount of electrolyte in the respective fluids. Twelve healthy adult subjects were recruited. Ri and Re of the leg, trunk, and arm of the subjects were determined from BIA measures prior to commencement of two separate studies that involved intervention, resulting in a loss/gain of body water effected either by a sauna followed by water intake (study 1) or by ingestion (study 2). Ri and Re of the segments were also determined at a number of times following these interventions. The mean change in body water, expressed as a percentage of body weight, was 0.9% in study 1 and 1.25% in study 2. For each study, the results for each subject were normalized for each limb to the initial (prestudy) value and then the normalized results for each segment were pooled for all subjects. ANOVA of these pooled results failed to demonstrate any significant differences between the normalized mean values of Ri or Re of the segments measured through the course of each study. The failure to detect a change in Ri or Re is explained in terms of the basic theory of BIA.

Analysis of Variance↗

Optimizing electrode sites for segmental bioimpedance measurements.

Recent advances in the application of bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) have indicated that a more accurate approach to the estimation of total body water is to consider the impedance of the various body segments rather than simply that of the whole body. The segmental approach necessitates defining and locating the physical demarcation between both the trunk and leg and the trunk and arm. Despite the use of anatomical markers, these points of demarcation are difficult to locate with precision between subjects. There are also technical problems associated with the regional dispersion of the current distribution from one segment (cylinder) to another of different cross-sectional area. The concept of equipotentials in line with the proximal aspects of the upper (and lower) limbs along the contralateral limbs was investigated and, in particular, the utility of this concept in the measurement of segmental bioimpedance. The variation of measured segmental impedance using electrode sites along these equipotentials was less than 2.0% for all of the commonly used impedance parameters. This variation is approximately equal to that expected from biological variation over the measurement time. It is recommended that the electrode sites, for the measurement of segmental bioelectrical impedance in humans, described herein are adopted in accordance with the proposals of the NIH Technology Assessment Conference Statement.

Arm↗

Multiple frequency bioelectrical impedance analysis: a cross-validation study of the inductor circuit and Cole models.

It has been proposed that multiple frequency bioelectrical impedance models of the human body should include an inductive property for the circulatory system, the inductor circuit model (ICM), and that such a model, when coupled with a new method of data analysis, can improve the predictive power of multiple frequency bioelectrical impedance analysis (MFBIA). This hypothesis was tested using MFBIA measurements and gold standard measures of total body and extracellular water volumes in a cross-validation study in two subject groups (viz. controls and HIV). The MFBIA measurements were analysed using the current, widely accepted Cole model and the alternative ICM model which includes an inductive component. Correlations in the range 0.75 to 0.92 (for TBW) and 0.46 to 0.79 (for ECW) for impedance quotients versus gold standard measures within the subject groups were observed. These decreased, to as low as r = 0.50 for TBW and r = 0.29 for ECW, when the derived algorithms were applied to the alternative subject group. These results suggest that lack of portability of MFBIA algorithms between subject groups is not due to an inadequacy of the analogue circuit model per se but is possibly due more to fundamental flaws in the principles associated with its application. These include assuming a constant proportionality of body segment geometries and tissue fluid resistivities. This study has also demonstrated that this inadequacy cannot be overcome by simply introducing an inductive component into the analogue electrical circuit.

Algorithms↗

Sensitivity of multiple frequency bioelectrical impedance analysis to changes in ion status.

Bioelectrical impedance analysis has found extensive application as a simple noninvasive method for the assessment of body fluid volumes. The measured impedance is, however, not only related to the volume of fluid but also to its inherent resistivity. The primary determinant of the resistivities of body fluids is the concentration of ions. The aim of this study was to investigate the sensitivity of bioelectrical impedance analysis to bodily ion status. Whole body impedance over a range of frequencies (4-1012 kHz) of rats was measured during infusion of various concentrations of saline into rats concomitant with measurement of total body and intracellular water by tracer dilution techniques. Extracellular resistance (R0), intracellular resistance (R(i)) and impedance at the characteristic frequency (Z(c)) were calculated. R0 and Z(c) were used to predict extracellular and total body water respectively using previously published formulae. The results showed that whilst R0 and Z(c) decreased proportionately to the amount of NaCl infused, R(i) increased only slightly. Impedances at the end of infusion predicted increases in TBW and ECW of approximately 4-6% despite a volume increase of less than 0.5% in TBW due to the volume of fluid infused. These data are discussed in relation to the assumption of constant resistivity in the prediction of fluid volumes from impedance data.

Animals↗

Potential errors in the application of mixture theory to multifrequency bioelectrical impedance analysis.

Potential errors in the application of mixture theory to the analysis of multiple-frequency bioelectrical impedance data for the determination of body fluid volumes are assessed. Potential sources of error include: conductive length; tissue fluid resistivity; body density; weight and technical errors of measurement. Inclusion of inaccurate estimates of body density and weight introduce errors of typically < +/- 3% but incorrect assumptions regarding conductive length or fluid resistivities may each incur errors of up to 20%.

Adult↗

Data analysis in multiple-frequency bioelectrical impedance analysis.

The performance of three analytical methods for multiple-frequency bioelectrical impedance analysis (MFBIA) data was assessed. The methods were the established method of Cole and Cole, the newly proposed method of Siconolfi and co-workers and a modification of this procedure. Method performance was assessed from the adequacy of the curve fitting techniques, as judged by the correlation coefficient and standard error of the estimate, and the accuracy of the different methods in determining the theoretical values of impedance parameters describing a set of model electrical circuits. The experimental data were well fitted by all curve-fitting procedures (r = 0.9 with SEE 0.3 to 3.5% or better for most circuit-procedure combinations). Cole-Cole modelling provided the most accurate estimates of circuit impedance values, generally within 1-2% of the theoretical values, followed by the Siconolfi procedure using a sixth-order polynomial regression (1-6% variation). None of the methods, however, accurately estimated circuit parameters when the measured impedances were low (< 20 omega) reflecting the electronic limits of the impedance meter used. These data suggest that Cole-Cole modelling remains the preferred method for the analysis of MFBIA data.

Body Composition↗

Bioelectrical impedance analysis for the estimation of body composition in rats.

Bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) was used to assess body composition in rats fed on either standard laboratory diet or on high-fat diet designed to induce obesity. Bioelectrical impedance analysis predictions of total body water and thus fat-free mass (FFM) for the group mean values were generally within 5% of the measured values by tritiated water (3H2O) dilution. The limits of agreement for the procedure were, however, large, approximately +/- 25%, limiting the applicability of the technique for measurement of body composition in individual animals.

Adipocytes↗

Evaluation of bioelectrical impedance for prospective nutritional assessment in cystic fibrosis.

We have compared the use of bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) with anthropometry for the prediction of changes in total body potassium (TBK) in a group (n = 31) of children with cystic fibrosis. Linear regression analysis showed that TBK was highly correlated (r > 0.93) with height2/impedance, weight, height, and fat-free mass (FFM) estimated from skin-fold measurements. Changes in TBK were also correlated, but less well, with changes in height2/impedance, weight, height, and FFM (r = 0.69, 0.59, 0.44, and 0.40, respectively). The children were divided into two groups: those who had normal accretion of TBK (> 5%/y) and those who had suboptimal accretion of TBK (< 5%/y). Analysis of variance showed that the significant difference in the change in TBK between the groups was detectable by concomitant changes in impedance and weight but not by changes in height, FFM, or weight and height Z scores. The results of this study suggest that serial BIA measures may be useful as a predictor of progressive undernutrition and poor growth in children with cystic fibrosis.

Adolescent↗

Extraction of electrical characteristics from pixels of multifrequency EIT images.

Computer modelling has shown that electrical characteristics of individual pixels may be extracted from within multiple-frequency electrical impedance tomography (MFEIT) images formed using a reference data set obtained from a purely resistive, homogeneous medium. In some applications it is desirable to extract the electrical characteristics of individual pixels from images where a purely resistive, homogeneous reference data set is not available. One such application of the technique of MFEIT is to allow the acquisition of in vivo images using reference data sets obtained from a non-homogeneous medium with a reactive component. However, the reactive component of the reference data set introduces difficulties with the extraction of the true electrical characteristics from the image pixels. This study was a preliminary investigation of a technique to extract electrical parameters from multifrequency images when the reference data set has a reactive component. Unlike the situation in which a homogeneous, resistive data set is available, it is not possible to obtain the impedance and phase information directly from the image pixel values of the MFEIT images data set, as the phase of the reactive reference is not known. The method reported here to extract the electrical characteristics (the Cole-Cole plot) initially assumes that this phase angle is zero. With this assumption, an impedance spectrum can be directly extracted from the image set. To obtain the true Cole-Cole plot a correction must be applied to account for the inherent rotation of the extracted impedance spectrum about the origin, which is a result of the assumption. This work shows that the angle of rotation associated with the reactive component of the reference data set may be determined using a priori knowledge of the distribution of frequencies of the Cole-Cole plot. Using this angle of rotation, the true Cole-Cole plot can be obtained from the impedance spectrum extracted from the MFEIT image data set. The method was investigated using simulated data, both with and without noise, and also for image data obtained in vitro. The in vitro studies involved 32 logarithmically spaced frequencies from 4 kHz up to 1 MHz and demonstrated that differences between the true characteristics and those of the impedance spectrum were reduced significantly after application of the correction technique. The differences between the extracted parameters and the true values prior to correction were in the range from 16% to 70%. Following application of the correction technique the differences were reduced to less than 5%. The parameters obtained from the Cole-Cole plot may be useful as a characterization of the nature and health of the imaged tissues.

Biometry↗

Bioelectrical impedance for monitoring the efficacy of lymphoedema treatment programmes.

The treatment of lymphoedema includes a combination of massage, compression bandaging, and exercise. To date the most common technique of assessing the efficacy of treatment has involved estimating the total limb volume from circumferential measurements at fixed intervals along the limb. This study investigated the application of multiple frequency bioelectrical impedance analysis, MFBIA, to monitor the volume of lymphoedema in the upper limb of patients who developed this disorder following surgery for cancer of the breast. Daily measurements of both circumference and impedance of both the affected and unaffected limbs were recorded for 20 patients throughout their 4 week treatment programmes. Twenty control subjects were also monitored daily over a similar 4 week period. Prior to the commencement of treatment the bioimpedance technique detected a significant (P < 0.01) asymmetry between the two limbs of the control subjects, associated with handedness (P < 0.001). Circumferential estimates of limb volumes in the control group detected no asymmetry. Impedance measures of extracellular fluid showed all of the patients to lie outside the 95% confidence interval determined from the data of the control group. The trends of the impedance measures and the circumferential estimates of volume throughout the 4 week program were found to be significantly different (P < 0.05); MFBIA exhibiting a greater sensitivity in the detection of lymphoedema. The results demonstrate that MFBIA is significantly more sensitive than circumferential measurement both in the early diagnosis of lymphoedema and in monitoring change.

Adult↗

Evaluation of multiple frequency bioelectrical impedance and Cole-Cole analysis for the assessment of body water volumes in healthy humans.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the application of a Cole-Cole analysis of multiple frequency bioelectrical impedance analysis (MFBIA) measurements to predict total body water (TBW) and extracellular water (ECW) in humans. This technique has previously been shown to produce accurate and reliable estimates in both normal and abnormal animals. DESIGN: The whole body impedance of 60 healthy humans was measured at 496 frequencies (ranging from 4 kHz to 1 MHz) and the impedance at zero frequency, Ro, and at the characteristic frequency, Zc, were determined from the impedance spectrum, (Cole-Cole plot). TBW and ECW were independently determined using deuterium and bromide tracer dilution techniques. SETTING: At the Dunn Clinical Nutrition Centre and The Department of Biochemistry, University of Queensland. SUBJECTS: 60 healthy adult volunteers (27 men and 33 women, aged 18-45 years). RESULTS: The results presented suggest that the swept frequency bioimpedance technique estimates total body water, (SEE = 5.2%), and extracellular water, (SEE = 10%), only slightly better in normal, healthy subjects than a method based on single frequency bioimpedance or anthropometric estimates based on weight, height and gender. CONCLUSIONS: This study has undertaken the most extensive analysis to date of relationships between TBW (and ECW) and individual impedances obtained at different frequencies ( > 400 frequencies), and has shown marginal advantages of using one frequency over another, even if values predicted from theoretical bioimpedance models are used in the estimations. However in situations where there are disturbances of fluid distribution, values predicted from the Cole-Cole analysis of swept frequency bioimpedance measurements could prove to be more useful.

Adolescent↗

Improved prediction of extracellular and total body water using impedance loci generated by multiple frequency bioelectrical impedance analysis.

Bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) using a frequency of 50 kHz is an established method of predicting total body water (TBW). However, very little research has been performed to determine whether 50 kHz is the optimum frequency for the prediction of TBW from impedance measurements. This paper analyses a mathematical expression describing the equivalent electrical circuit for biological tissue, and derives a graphical representation of the resistive and reactive components. The nature of the resulting impedance locus was used in the analysis of measured whole-body impedance of 42 rats over a range of frequencies to determine the impedance at the characteristic frequency, Zc, and also the impedance at zero frequency, R0. The standard error associated with the prediction of TBW (determined by isotope dilution) using Zc was 5.9% compared with a standard error of prediction of 10.1% using the established BIA method at 50 kHz on the same data. Predictions of extracellular water (ECW) using the impedance at zero frequency, R0, yielded a standard error of 3.2% compared with standard errors of 4.8% and 4.2% using single frequency BIA measurements at 5 kHz and 1 kHz, respectively. These results demonstrate a significant (P < 0.01) improvement in the prediction of TBW and ECW using multiple frequency bioelectrical impedance analysis (MFBIA).

Animals↗