Bioelectrical impedance analysis; a new method to evaluate lymphoedema, fluid status, and tissue damage after gynaecological surgery - A systematic review

Changes in intracellular water volume after leg lymphedema onset and lymphaticovenular anastomosis as its surgical intervention

OBJECTIVE

To clarify the changes in the intracellular water (ICW) volume in lymphedema-affected legs after lymphedema onset and its surgical intervention (ie, lymphaticovenular anastomosis [LVA]), we investigated the changes in body water composition using bioelectrical impedance analysis.

METHODS

This retrospective case series included 41 women with unilateral secondary leg lymphedema. The volume changes in the ICW and extracellular water (ECW) of the affected leg were measured using an InBody S10 (InBody Co, Ltd) multifrequency bioelectrical impedance analyzer, at both lymphedema onset and 1 year after LVA.

RESULTS

The volume increase with leg lymphedema onset was comparable between the ECW and ICW (0.59 L vs 0.56 L; 95% confidence interval [CI], -0.02 to 0.06; P = .27), and the increase rate was higher for ECW (35.3% vs 22.1%; 95% CI, 9.3%-17.2%; P < .001). The volume reduction at 1 year after LVA was comparable between ECW and ICW (0.23 L vs 0.27 L; 95% CI, -0.08 to 0.02; P = .20), and the reduction rate was higher for ECW (8.7% vs 7.0%, 95% CI, 0.04%-3.2%; P = .044). The volume difference between ICW and ECW remained constant throughout the six measurements before and after LVA (F[3.01, 120.20] = 1.85; P < .14).

CONCLUSIONS

Leg LVA reduced ICW in the lymphedematous leg. The onset of leg lymphedema increased ECW and ICW in the affected limb, and LVA decreased both ECW and ICW. The volume change in the affected leg was comparable between ECW and ICW at both lymphedema onset and after LVA. However, the rate of change was higher for ECW. The volume difference between ICW and ECW remained constant. Using bioelectrical impedance analysis, alterations in ICW volume were detected in the legs affected by lymphedema, both after the onset of lymphedema and after LVA intervention.

Screening for Breast Cancer-Related Lymphedema Development Using Extracellular Water Ratio

Background: This case-control retrospective study examined whether the extracellular water ratio (%ECW) of the upper extremity, as measured through bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA), could be an indicator of the development and severity of breast cancer-related lymphedema (BCRL). Methods and Results: BIA was used to evaluate the changes in %ECW due to BCRL development, with the %ECW measured in female patients with unilateral BCRL and healthy controls. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was performed to assess the diagnostic ability of %ECW to distinguish BCRL patients from controls. Twenty female patients, who were eligible for inclusion, and 20 healthy control volunteers were included. The %ECW of the affected arm correlated with the water volume difference between the affected and unaffected arms (R2 = 0.7183). ROC analysis showed that %ECW had a high diagnostic ability as a screening tool for BCRL development (area under the ROC curve = 0.982). A cutoff %ECW value of 38.5% could predict the presence of BCRL with a sensitivity of 91.7% and specificity of 97.9%. Conclusions: This study confirmed that %ECW could assess the presence and severity of BCRL in a single measurement noninvasively in a shorter amount of time. The %ECW value strongly correlated with excess arm body water volume, an indicator of the severity of unilateral arm lymphedema. The cutoff %ECW value could predict the presence of BCRL with high accuracy.

Multi-segment bioimpedance in the evaluation of treatment for secondary lower limb lymphedema: Gynecological cancer

<b>Aim</b>: The present aimed study was to report the mobilization of body fluids after five days of intensive treatment for secondary lower limb lymphedema.<br /> <b>Materials and methods</b>: A crossover clinical trial was conducted involving the analysis of changes in intracellular and extracellular fluids in all extremities and the trunk in women with lower limb lymphedema secondary to treatment for gynecological cancer. Evaluations were performed with multi-segment bio impedance analysis before and after intensive treatment using Godoy Method® eight hours per day for five days. Comparisons were made using Wilcoxon signed-ranks test.<br /> <b>Results</b>: Significant changes in intracellular and extracellular fluids were found in all extremities and the trunk (p&lt;0.0001 for all comparisons).<br /> <b>Conclusion</b>: Intensive Godoy Method® leads to important changes in the distribution of body fluids in the treatment of lower limb lymphedema following treatment for gynecological cancer, with a significant increase in fluids in the upper limbs and trunk as well as significant reductions in the lower limb and in intracellular and extracellular water.

Bioelectrical impedance analysis in patients with breast cancer-related lymphedema before and after lymphaticovenular anastomosis

OBJECTIVE

Bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) as a measure of lymphedema has been gaining popularity because of its measurement simplicity and noninvasiveness. This study was performed to investigate the effectiveness of BIA for assessment of the outcomes of lymphaticovenular anastomosis (LVA) in patients with breast cancer-related lymphedema.

METHODS

This study involved 25 patients with unilateral breast cancer-related lymphedema who underwent LVA. Segmental multifrequency BIA and conventional circumferential volume measurement were performed preoperatively and 6 months postoperatively from June 2018 to June 2021 at Hiroshima University Hospital International Center for Lymphedema. The patients' clinicopathological data, operative details, and preoperative and postoperative BIA results were investigated.

RESULTS

Segmental multifrequency BIA and circumferential volume measurement were strongly correlated in the lymphedema-affected upper limb both before and after LVA. The interlimb volume, interlimb extracellular water ratio (r = 0.784; P < .001), and interlimb extracellular water/total body water ratio were positively correlated (r = 0.612; P < .01), whereas the phase angle was negatively associated (r = -0.556; P < .01).

CONCLUSIONS

Segmental multifrequency BIA can be a useful tool for assessing the severity of lymphedema and monitoring the outcomes of LVA.

Effects of exercise programs on phase angle in older adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis

The purpose of this study was to calculate the effects of exercise programs on phase angle (PhA) in older people. A systematic review was undertaken in multiple electronic databases in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses statement guidelines for the purposes of selecting randomized controlled trials that measured the effects of the exercise programs on PhA in older adults on 31 March 2022. We carried out a random-effect meta-analysis for the effects of exercise programs on PhA. Additionally, we analysed the differences between subgroups in terms of weekly frequency, number of sets and repetitions, and duration of interventions. Studies were methodological assessed through the PEDro scale where one had excellent, ten had good, and three had poor methodological quality. For the purposes of the study, fourteen studies met the criteria for inclusion. However, four studies did not have enough information to be included in the quantitative analysis. The remaining ten articles revealed moderate effects on PhA in favour of intervention groups (p=0.009, SMD=0.72 [0.46-0.99], I2=54%). The meta-analysis also showed that interventions lasting twelve weeks are more successful in generating positive effects on PhA as opposed to eight weeks (SMD's=0.79 vs. 0.64, respectively). These results indicate that resistance training (RT) is an effective and safe to improve PhA in the older people, especially through RT programs lasting from eight to twelve weeks. A novel finding of this study was that RT is the most used type of exercise by authors when assessing the PhA in older adults.

The Clinical Usefulness of Lymphedema Measurement Technique Using Ultrasound

Background: We previously invented a new technique to measure the cross-sectional area of soft tissue of a limb (ΔCSA) with lymphedema using ultrasonography. The measurement correlated strongly with both circumference and volumetry in normal subjects. The purpose of this study was to measure the reliability and accuracy of the method in patients with lymphedema. Methods and Results: Ultrasonography was performed on both arms of 69 female patients diagnosed with stage ≥1 lymphedema related to advanced breast cancer. At 10 cm above elbow (AE) and below elbow (BE), soft-tissue thicknesses at various locations were measured by two examiners. Subcutaneous tissue stiffness was also obtained by measuring thickness differences of soft tissue when applying minimal and maximal pressure to the skin (compliance) and its ratio to the initial thickness (compliance ratio). ΔCSA showed a strong positive correlation with circumference (r = 0.758 to 0.951), and a moderate negative correlation with Z at 5 Hz (r = -0.326 to -0.486). Intra- and interclass coefficients of all ultrasonography measurements were moderate to excellent (0.623-0.990). Compliance measured at 10 cm BE on the lesion side was significantly higher than on the normal side (p < 0.001), and compliance measured at 10 cm AE showed no difference between the two sides (p = 0.653). Conversely, compliance ratios measured at 10 cm AE and BE on the lesion side were significantly lower than on the normal side (p < 0.001). Conclusion: Thus, ΔCSA using ultrasonography could be a particularly viable option for determining status in lymphedema patients.

Three Decades of Bioelectrical Impedance Spectroscopy in Lymphedema Assessment: An Historical Perspective

Bioelectrical impedance spectroscopy (BIS) is a technology that is widely used for the assessment of body composition. The method is based on the measurement of the electrical resistance of the body or a body region that can be quantitatively related to the amount of water in the tissues. Lymphedema is characterized, at least in its early stages, as an accumulation of lymph, an extracellular fluid. In the late 1980s, it was recognized that it might be possible to adapt BIS protocols to measure this increase in lymph volume. Subsequently, the use of BIS for the early detection of breast cancer-related lymphedema was demonstrated in the early 1990s, with BIS reference values indicative of lymphedema published in 2001. The subsequent two decades have seen BIS become a widely accepted method for lymphedema assessment. This review traces the evolution of the BIS technique since its inception and presents the current state of the art, with particular emphasis on utility in clinical practice.

Understanding Volume Kinetics: The Role of Pharmacokinetic Modeling and Analysis in Fluid Therapy

Fluid therapy is a rapidly evolving yet imprecise clinical practice based upon broad assumptions, species-to-species extrapolations, obsolete experimental evidence, and individual preferences. Although widely recognized as a mainstay therapy in human and veterinary medicine, fluid therapy is not always benign and can cause significant harm through fluid overload, which increases patient morbidity and mortality. As with other pharmaceutical substances, fluids exert physiological effects when introduced into the body and therefore should be considered as "drugs." In human medicine, an innovative adaptation of pharmacokinetic analysis for intravenous fluids known as volume kinetics using serial hemoglobin dilution and urine output has been developed, refined, and investigated extensively for over two decades. Intravenous fluids can now be studied like pharmaceutical drugs, leading to improved understanding of their distribution, elimination, volume effect, efficacy, and half-life (duration of effect) under various physiologic conditions, making evidence-based approaches to fluid therapy possible. This review article introduces the basic concepts of volume kinetics, its current use in human and animal research, as well as its potential and limitations as a research tool for fluid therapy research in veterinary medicine. With limited evidence to support our current fluid administration practices in veterinary medicine, a greater understanding of volume kinetics and body water physiology in veterinary species would ideally provide some evidence-based support for safer and more effective intravenous fluid prescriptions in veterinary patients.

Extracellular Water Ratio as an Indicator of the Development and Severity of Leg Lymphedema Using Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis

Background: This case-control retrospective study focused on the extracellular water ratio (%ECW) of lymphedemic limbs measured by bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) as a possible indicator of the development and severity of unilateral and bilateral leg lymphedema. Methods and Results: BIA was used to evaluate changes in %ECW due to lymphedema in female patients with unilateral secondary leg lymphedema and in healthy controls. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was employed to assess the diagnostic ability of %ECW to distinguish leg lymphedema patients from controls. Thirty-eight female patients were eligible for inclusion along with an equal number of healthy control volunteers. The %ECW of the affected leg correlated with leg body water volume (R² = 0.28) and the water volume difference between affected and unaffected legs (R² = 0.58). The ROC analysis showed that %ECW had a high diagnostic ability as a screening tool for the development of leg lymphedema (area under the ROC curve = 0.96). A cutoff %ECW value of 40.0% could predict the presence of leg lymphedema with a sensitivity of 81.6% and specificity of 97.4%. Conclusions: %ECW value may be a simple and useful indicator of the development and severity of leg lymphedema. As a screening test, %ECW measurement can predict the presence of unilateral or bilateral leg lymphedema in a single measurement without the need for arm, contralateral leg, or previous measurements as controls.

Role of Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis in the Evaluation of Patients with Upper Limb Lymphedema

Background: Monofrequency bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) protocols seek to further quantify changes in lymphedema compared with traditional circumferential evaluations. Complex decongestive therapy (CDT) is an effective method of reducing unilateral upper limb lymphedema secondary to breast cancer treatments. Comparing lymphedema measurements between segmental tetrapolar BIA, total body BIA, and circumferential measurements during therapeutic changes can improve our quantitative assessment ability for this prevalent medical complication. Methods and Results: Twenty-two patients with breast-cancer-related unilateral upper limb lymphedema participated in this prospective observational study. Circumferential measurements, segmental tetrapolar BIA, and total body BIA were obtained and compared before CDT, immediately after 10 sessions of CDT, and 30 days post-CDT to assess lymphedema. The segmental tetrapolar BIA correlated well with improvements in circumferential measurements of the limb. We found that the resistance value cutoff point of 237 Ω could indicate a recurrence of lymphedema. Conclusions: Segmental, tetrapolar monofrequency BIA provides a simple method to monitor and evaluate the efficacy of therapy in the outpatient setting by operators with minimal training. This protocol could aid quantitative evaluations of unilateral upper limb lymphedema.

Feasibility of Bioimpedance Analysis to Assess the Outcome of Complex Decongestive Therapy in Cancer Treatment-Related Lymphedema

Background: Cancer treatment-related lymphedema (CTRL) affects patients physically, psychologically and emotionally, and remains a significant quality of life issue among patients with cancer. Reliable methods to measure changes in lymphedema are required for early detection, acute intensive treatment, and long-term management. Here, we evaluated the use of bioimpedance analysis (BIA) as a tool to measure lymphedema before and after treatment.

Patients and Methods: Patients with CTRL who were admitted to a secondary university hospital between October 2017 and July 2018 for complex decongestive therapy (CDT) were eligible for this prospective cohort study. Circumferential measure (CM) and BIA were used to evaluate lymphedema at admission (initial) and before discharge (follow-up, FU). Volume was calculated from the CM using the truncated cone formula. The inter-limb ratios (ILRs) of the circumference, volume, and impedance were also calculated as the unaffected limb to affected limb. Each parameter before and after treatment and correlations between parameters also were analyzed.

Results: A total of 29 patients (12 upper- and 17 lower-extremity CTRL) completed were included in this analysis. Absolute value and the ILRs of circumference, volume or impedance, and extracellular water/total body water (ECW/TBW) were significantly improved at FU (p < 0.01, p < 0.05). The initial and FU absolute values, ILRs, ECW/TBW correlated significantly with each other (p < 0.01, p < 0.05). The cutoff values of ECW/TBW for moderate and severe degree of CTRL were 0.3855 and 0.3955, respectively. The changes of ILRs between initial and FU assessments were significantly different among three groups according to lymphedema severity (p < 0.01, p < 0.05).

Conclusions: BIA data correlates significantly with clinical measurement, and therefore can be a practical tool in monitoring outcome measure after lymphedema treatment. In addition, BIA is more sensitive to subtle changes in lymphedema, and therefore can be useful for the long-term maintenance of lymphedema.