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Body composition in young children with cystic fibrosis

Jane E Williams1

  • 1Childhood Nutrition Research Centre, UCL Institute of Child Health, London, UK. jane.williams@ucl.ac.uk

World Review of Nutrition and Dietetics
|February 23, 2013
PubMed

Insights

Malnutrition in cystic fibrosis (CF) is linked to poor prognosis. Measuring body composition, especially fat-free mass, can help identify at-risk children, with the 4-component model offering the most accurate assessment.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatrics
  • Nutrition Science
  • Medical Diagnostics

Background:

  • Malnutrition in cystic fibrosis (CF) patients indicates a poor prognosis.
  • CF patients often exhibit altered body composition, including high fat mass and/or low fat-free mass, impacting clinical outcomes.
  • Accurate body composition assessment is crucial for risk stratification in CF.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the role of body composition measurement in identifying malnutrition and predicting prognosis in cystic fibrosis.
  • To compare the utility of simple body composition techniques versus the gold standard 4-component model in CF patients.

Main Methods:

  • Review of evidence on body composition in cystic fibrosis.
  • Discussion of simple body composition techniques and their limitations.
  • Highlighting the 4-component model as a gold standard for body composition assessment.

Main Results:

  • Simple body composition methods, despite potential biases, can identify children with high fat or low fat-free mass.
  • The 4-component model provides a more accurate assessment of fat mass and fat-free mass components.

Conclusions:

  • Body composition measurement is valuable for assessing nutritional status and prognosis in cystic fibrosis.
  • While simple methods offer utility, the 4-component model ensures greater accuracy in evaluating body composition in CF patients.

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