Slide 4 - Skinfolds Flashcards
What is a skinfold measurement measuring
Measuring 2 layers of skin and subcutaneous fat between the layers
What is a skinfold measurement
What does it evaluate
A technique where the thickness of the skin and subcutaneous fat is estimated
Evaluates localisation of storage fat
What type of method does skinfolds use
What is the basis of the method
Generalised/population-specific method
Based on the fact that subcutaneous fat is a proportion of total fat in the body
Equations made to estimate skinfold thickness to overall body fat
What do skinfold spring loaded calipers exert
Standardised pressure
What do plastic calipers do
Less scale precision
None constant tension throughout ROM
Smaller measurement scale
What should we do before measuring with a skinfold caliper
Check calibration
Use same caliper to monitor change
What are the site differences in males and females
Women 3 site:
Triceps
Suprailiac
Thigh
Men 3 site:
Chest
Abdomen
Thigh
What are the assumptions of skinfolds
Age is an independent predictor of body density for adults
Skinfolds are a good estimate of subcutaneous fat
Distribution of fat subcutaneously and internally (visceral) is similar for all individuals within each gender
The sum of several skinfolda can be used to estimate total body fat
There is a relationship between sum of skinfolds and body density
Density and proportion of tissues making FFM are constant
Someone who has more visceral than subcutaneous is at
Higher risk
What are the potential sources of error in skinfolds
Ease of separating adipose layers from underlying muscle
Compressibility of skin and adipose tissue
Different proportions of visceral and adipose tissue
Handedness
Skin thickness
What is validity
How do you know if something is valid
Accuracy of measurement
Comparison between calculation of gold standard vs alternative method
This is known as the validity coefficient
What is the validity coefficient
Correlation between gold standard and alternative method
What coefficient would show a perfect relationship
What is the rule of thumb
Coefficient of 1.0
The closer the R value to 1.0 the better = > 0.8 is good
What is the standard error of the estimate (SEE)
What does it quantify
What is the rule of thumb
Average degree of deviation of data around a line
Quantifies the accuracy or validity
The smaller the better
What is reliability
Assesses repeatability of measurement - looking for consistency and stability of scores
What is the reliability coefficient
What is the rule of thumb
Correlation between test 1 and test 2
The test method is the same each time
> 0.9 is good
What is objectivity
Inter-tester reliability
Comparison of scores by multiple technicians
What influences a technicians ability
Training
Practice
Standard procedures
What is objectivity coefficient
What is the rule of thumb
Correlation between tester 1 and tester 2
> 0.9 is good