Validity and Reliability of Assessing Body Composition Using a Mobile Application

The purpose of this study was to determine the validity and reliability of the LeanScreen (LS) mobile application that estimates percent body fat (%BF) using estimates of circumferences from photographs. The %BF of 148 weight-stable adults was estimated once using dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (D...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Medicine and science in sports and exercise 2017-12, Vol.49 (12), p.2593-2599
Main Authors: Macdonald, Elizabeth Z, Vehrs, Pat R, Fellingham, Gilbert W, Eggett, Dennis, George, James D, Hager, Ronald
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Absorptiometry, Photon
Adolescent
Adult
Anthropometry - methods
Body Composition
Body Fat Distribution - methods
Female
Humans
Male
Middle Aged
Mobile Applications
Photography
Reproducibility of Results
Young Adult
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Summary:The purpose of this study was to determine the validity and reliability of the LeanScreen (LS) mobile application that estimates percent body fat (%BF) using estimates of circumferences from photographs. The %BF of 148 weight-stable adults was estimated once using dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA). Each of two administrators assessed the %BF of each subject twice using the LS app and manually measured circumferences. A mixed-model ANOVA and Bland-Altman analyses were used to compare the estimates of %BF obtained from each method. Interrater and intrarater reliabilities values were determined using multiple measurements taken by each of the two administrators. The LS app and manually measured circumferences significantly underestimated (P < 0.05) the %BF determined using DXA by an average of -3.26 and -4.82 %BF, respectively. The LS app (6.99 %BF) and manually measured circumferences (6.76 %BF) had large limits of agreement. All interrater and intrarater reliability coefficients of estimates of %BF using the LS app and manually measured circumferences exceeded 0.99. The estimates of %BF from manually measured circumferences and the LS app were highly reliable. However, these field measures are not currently recommended for the assessment of body composition because of significant bias and large limits of agreements.
ISSN:0195-9131
1530-0315
DOI:10.1249/MSS.0000000000001378