Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 8, 2026
Evaluation of Fluid Overload by Bioelectrical Impedance Vectorial Analysis
Published on: August 17, 2022
Are Bioimpedance Parameters Altered in Adults With Down Syndrome? A Cross-Sectional Study
Anselmo de Athayde Costa E Silva1,2, María Carbó-Carreté3,4, Casimiro Javierre5
1Graduate Program in Human Movement Sciences, Federal University of Pará, Belém, Brazil.
Background:
Individuals with Down syndrome (DS) exhibit altered body composition that could be assessed through bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA). This study aims to compare the BIA measures and bioelectrical impedance vector analysis (BIVA) between individuals with and without DS.
Methods:
We evaluated 46 individuals with and 46 without DS through BIA and BIVA. We employed generalized linear models (GLM) to assess the effects of group and sex on BIA, adjusting by age and height.
Results:
Individuals with DS had lower whole-body resistance/height (DS: 332.1 ± 51.1; non-DS: 349.0 ± 57.5 Ω/m), reactance/height (DS: 36.4 ± 5.0; non-DS: 41.9 ± 4.9 Ω/m) and impedance/height (DS: 334.1 ± 51.2; non-DS: 351.4 ± 57.6 Ω/m), while men with DS showed lower phase angle (DS: 6.4 ± 0.7; non-DS: 7.0° ± 0.5°) and lower bioimpedance index (DS: 50.8 ± 6.1; non-DS: 55.2 ± 6.5 Ω/m2); men and women with DS had higher total body water (males p = 0.030; females p = 0.006) and intracellular water (males p = 0.020; females p = 0.010) compared with individuals without DS; women had lower extracellular water (males p = 0.090; females p = 0.004) compared with individuals without DS; the bioelectrical vectors for individuals with DS were different from the population ellipses (p < 0.050), and showed overhydration compared with non-DS.
Conclusions:
Adults with DS showed a distinct hydration pattern in comparison with non-DS adults, as shown in BIA and BIVA analysis.
