在学术医疗中心实施运动员身体成分分析,Journal of Clinical Densitometry

Purpose/AimsThe purpose is to describe the process for creation and implementation of a body composition analysis program within an academic medical center for evaluation of elite athletes pre-, mid-, and post-season, as well as after injury.

Rationale/BackgroundBody composition analysis is an accepted technique for measurement of muscle, fat, and bone strength that has been possible for more than 30 years but remains underutilized and not well understood by referring health care providers. Elite athletes, at the college and professional level, are maintained at the optimal level of fitness and strength, but there has been a limit to methods to measure and compare strength and possible resistance to and recovery from injury. A carefully developed program is important to assist sports medicine and trainers/orthopedics in understanding subtle changes in muscle mass, bone strength/density, and body fat levels.

Brief Description of the Undertaking/Best PracticeA GE iDXA was utilized for measurements of all aspects of body composition at an urban academic medical center – body mass, lean mass, android/gynoid ration, %bodyfat, body mass index, resting skeletal muscle index, bone mineral density, bone mineral content, and changes over time and depending upon perceived level of fitness. The technology has been standard on DXA for several decades and has been used intermittently. Patients were imaged with standard protocol at distinct points of time – pre-season, mid-season, and post-season. In addition, patients were imaged after injury and prior to return to their sport. Athletes included professional basketball players, professional hockey players, professional dancers, and college wrestlers and swimmers. For patients who did not fit onto the standard table because of height or breadth, standardized techniques to image in either sides or quadrants were used to include all regions of the body with careful parsing and compiling of the provided data. The findings were communicated to the patient and shared with the team, and focused training was instituted depending upon the results. Individual regions were measures (e.g. right and left leg, torso, et al.) Continued measurements of future injury for reduced/improved athleticism were measured by feedback.

Outcomes achieved/documentedBaseline data was acquired for all athletes/patients. Routine body composition assessment was performed with standard technique while fasting to reduce variation. Data was acquired. Pre-season data revealed lower lean mass, higher body fat, and altered BMI compared to mid-season and post-season analysis. In addition, regional body part evaluation demonstrated higher lean mass within the dominant side (not statistically significant) with reduction of bone mineral density and lean mass post-injury compared to mid-season.

ConclusionsBody composition analysis has the opportunity to be implemented in the management and care of athletes, including so-called weekend warriors, to maintain a high level of fitness and potentially to reduce injury and prevent athletes from returning too soon with the associated risk. In particular, the program at our academic medical center has been successful in evaluating an increasing numbers of athletes with acceptance by the professional and college-level programs to incorporate body composition analysis as part of their program and health management. In the future, this pilot should be expanded to include specific teams and groups of athletes/sports to compare between patients and understand how support of these individuals can be optimized.