Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 8, 2026
Comparative Analysis of Human Growth Hormone in Serum Using SPRi, Nano-SPRi and ELISA Assays
Published on: January 7, 2016
Comparison of body composition assessment methods in patients with human immunodeficiency virus-associated wasting
John G Esposito1, Scott G Thomas, Lori Kingdon
1Graduate Department of Rehabilitation Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5G 1V7.
Context:
Bioelectrical impedance spectroscopy (BIS) and skinfold anthropometry (SKF) have been used to monitor body composition among patients with HIV wasting; however, validation of these techniques during recombinant human GH (rhGH) treatment has not been performed.
Objective:
Our objective was to evaluate the degree of agreement between criterion measurements of dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and those of BIS and SKF in patients with HIV wasting treated with rhGH.
Design And Setting:
We conducted a randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled, two-period crossover trial at the University of Toronto and Mount Sinai Hospital (Toronto, Canada).
Patients:
A referred sample of 27 community-dwelling men with HIV-associated weight loss (> or =10% over preceding 12 months) despite optimal antiretroviral therapy participated in the study.
Intervention:
Intervention was one daily injection of rhGH (6 mg) or placebo self-administered for 3 months in a crossover fashion with a 3-month washout.
Main Outcome Measures:
Fat-free mass (FFM) and fat mass (FM) were measured by BIS, SKF, and DXA before and after rhGH and placebo treatment.
Results:
FFM(BIS) was not significantly different from FFM(DXA) after rhGH treatment (P = 0.10). Mean differences (bias +/- sd) according to Bland-Altman analysis were smaller for SKF than for BIS (P < 0.05) at all time points, yet treatment-induced change in FM was better detected with BIS than with SKF. BIS estimates of FFM and FM showed better agreement with those of DXA after rhGH treatment (1.6 +/- 4.6 kg and -2.1 +/- 3.9 kg) compared with baseline (3.8 +/- 3.5 kg and -4.1 +/- 3.6 kg) and placebo (2.7 +/- 4.4 kg and -3.1 +/- 4.6) (P < 0.05). BIS overestimated and SKF underestimated the treatment-induced changes in FFM and FM.
Conclusions:
SKF was more accurate than BIS when measuring body composition in patients with HIV wasting before and after rhGH treatment; nonetheless, the accuracy of BIS increased after treatment. Change in FM because of treatment was not accurately assessed with SKF.
