Ultrasound-Derived Forearm Muscle Thickness Is a Powerful Predictor for Estimating DXA-Derived Appendicular Lean Mass in Japanese Older Adults

To test the validity of published equations, anterior forearm muscle thickness (MT-ulna) of 158 Japanese older adults (72 men and 86 women) aged 50-79 y was measured with ultrasound. Appendicular lean soft tissue mass (aLM) was estimated from MT-ulna using two equations (body height without [eqn 1] and with [eqn 2]) previously published in the literature. Appendicular lean mass was measured using dual-energy X-ray absorption (DXA), and this method served as the reference criterion. There was a strong correlation between DXA-derived and ultrasound-estimated aLM in both equations (r = 0.882 and r = 0.944). Total error was 2.60 kg for eqn (1) and 1.38 kg for eqn (2). A Bland-Altman plot revealed that there was no systematic bias between DXA-derived and ultrasound-estimated aLM; however, eqn (1) overestimated aLM compared with DXA-derived aLM. Our results suggest that an ultrasound MT-ulna equation that includes body height is appropriate and useful for estimating aLM in Japanese adults.