Rjg. Vandenbergemons et al., ARE SKINFOLD MEASUREMENTS SUITABLE TO COMPARE BODY-FAT BETWEEN CHILDREN WITH SPASTIC CEREBRAL-PALSY AND HEALTHY CONTROLS, Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology, 40(5), 1998, pp. 335-339
The aim of this study was to assess whether percentage of body fat (BF
) can be predicted adequately from skinfold measurements in comparativ
e studies of children with spastic cerebral palsy (CP) and healthy con
trol children. The deuterium dilution technique (D2O) was used as a re
ference method. In contrast with what was expected, %BF predicted from
skinfold measurements was considerably lower than that determined by
the D2O method in children with CP, whereas in the controls this was n
ot seen. A proportionally large internal fat deposit and a different d
istribution of subcutaneous fat in children with CP may be responsible
for this. It was concluded that skinfold measurements are not suitabl
e for predicting %BF in comparative studies of children with CP and co
ntrol children. For evaluation of diet- or exercise-related interventi
ons in children with CP, the use of skinfold measurements seems to be
justified. However, it may be more appropriate to use skinfold thickne
sses without converting them to BF.