Abstract
The current issue brings yet again another advance in this technology. 10 Using bioimpedance spectroscopy, Kilbreath and colleagues have explored the factors that affect the volume of extracellular fluid in the ipsilateral extremity both pre- and post-operatively, in order to assess the value of pre-operative quantification of extracellular fluid volume for post-operative diagnosis. The study demonstrates that change from the pre-operative volume identified post-operative edema more effectively than the utilization of previously reported thresholds.
On a closely related topic, Newman et al. have investigated the precision of dual energy x-ray absorptiometry and bioelectric impedance spectroscopy for the assessment of breast cancer-related lymphedema. 11 The study proposes to address the changing composition of the affected tissues during the natural history of breast cancer-lymphedema progression. The authors have determined that, for this class of disease pathology, both methodologies possess the requisite degree of precision to assess lean mass, fat mass, and extracellular fluid volume of the affected extremity.