Bioelectrical phase angle and impedance vectors are related to leg hip-femur density and bone geometry parameters in adolescent male soccer players.
Background: Bone geometry parameters are essential for evaluating bone health and fracture risk in soccer players, whose physical demands affect their bone characteristics. However, studies on adolescent soccer players linking raw bioelectrical data to bone data are lacking, in addition to potential discrepancies in phase angle (PhA) values obtained using single-frequency (SF-BIA) and multifrequency (MF-BIA) bioelectrical impedance devices.
Objective: In this cross-sectional study, we aimed to compare raw bioelectrical impedance data (resistance (R), reactance (Xc), and PhA values) obtained using SF-BIA and MF-BIA devices and test the relationships among PhA and bioelectrical impedance vector analysis (BIVA) with bone mineral density (BMD), and leg hip-femur geometry (HF-G) parameters in adolescent male soccer players.
Methods: Raw bioelectrical impedance data were assessed using the SF-BIA and MF-BIA devices at a frequency of 50 kHz. The HF-G parameters were obtained by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. BIVA was used to compare bone data considering BMD and HF-G median values.
Results: Overall, 59 adolescent male soccer players participated in this study. Raw SF-BIA data had lower R values (-19.3 %, p < 0.001), but higher Xc (+5.3 %, p < 0.001) and PhA values (+20.3 %, p < 0.001) than when using MF-BIA data. PhA values obtained using SF-BIA (r = 0.27, p = 0.04) or MF-BIA (r = 0.43, p < 0.001) were positively correlated with total hip-femur BMD. Considering BIVA, the ellipses differed for the total BMD (p = 0.0018), neck BMD (p = 0.026), and cross-sectional area (p = 0.024).
Conclusions: The PhA and R values obtained using SF-BIA were higher than those obtained using MF-BIA, possibly because of the technological differences between the devices. However, the MF-BIA data suggests that PhA and BIVA can be used as tools for continuous use to warn of possible imbalances in bone tissue.