How can I measure and properly interpret waist circumference?
Overweight and obesity have become significant subjects in today’s healthcare because the more fat the body accumulates the higher chance of suffering from heart disease, diabetes mellitus, stroke, and high blood pressure.

Distinguishing between apple-shaped and pear-shaped bodies is vital because this demonstrates where most of the fat is deposited within the body. Individuals who tend to store fat around the waist (apple-shaped bodies) are at a greater health risk than those who accumulate fat around the hips, thighs, and butt (pear-shaped bodies). Thus, these are substantial reasons for the growing need of measuring tapes.

How can I distinguish which grip position on the electrodes is most suitable for my height?
Since the patient needs to stretch their legs and arms out as far as possible, most individuals select the lower pair of electrodes.

Taller individuals who need to bend their knees in order to grasp the lower electrodes should select the higher electrodes.

How can I interpret the phase angle?
The phase angle is an indicator of overall health, metabolic activity, and nutritional status. Percentiles in the normal ranges for age and gender are suitable for interpretation of the data.

n addition to an adequate cell mass (BMI in the normal range), a pronounced muscle mass has a strong influence on the phase angle. Since men have a higher proportion of muscle than women typically men have a higher phase angle. As we age, the phase angle declines with muscle mass and metabolic changes. Low phase angle values result from reduced cell mass (underweight), chronic illness and in particular from overhydration (e.g., in dialysis).

How do I interpret the BIVA?
Bioelectrical Impedance Vector Analysis (BIVA) presents information on Total Body Water and the phase angle in a single diagram. This allows the doctor to assess the patient's hydration status, nutritional status, and fitness level. By considering these values together, the doctor can distinguish, for example, an overhydrated patient with heart failure from a bodybuilder.

While the amount of body water is identically high (a bodybuilder's body water is elevated because muscle contains 75% of intracellular water), the bodybuilder has a high phase angle and the patient with heart failure has a low phase angle, given the overhydration in the extracellular area.

How do I interpret the BCC?
The Body Composition Chart has two axes. The Fat Mass (FM) is on the Y-axis and Fat-Free Mass (FFM) is on the X-axis. Each value is presented as an index, which means - as in the BMI - that the values are normalized by height. This allows a comparison to be made between a man who is 5 ft and a man that is 6.5 ft. Add the FMI and FFMI values together to yield the BMI.

The Body Composition Chart is a two-dimensional (or overtime a three-dimensional) BMI that shows what contributes to weight loss - fat mass or muscle mass.

The center of the graphic is the statistical average for the specific patient. In this case, the fat mass is slightly below average for a man because the measurement point moves downwards from the midpoint. The Fat-Free Mass is above-average since the measurement point moves to the right of the midpoint.

Physically active obese people have both an increased FM and an increased FFM. This type of body composition is reflected in the points in the two upper right quadrants. A low FM with a simultaneous high FFM indicates an athletic body composition and a low FM with low FFM indicates a lean composition. Undesirable body composition is one with an elevated Fat Mass - obesity - along with a reduced Fat-Free Mass - muscle deterioration, referred to as sarcopenic obesity.

What is the best way to clean the Seca mBCA after a measurement?
After measuring, the Seca mBCA can be easily cleaned with a moistened disinfectant wipe.

Seca recommends using products that do not contain alcohol or chlorine. The touch-display can also be safely cleaned and disinfected with the wipes.

How can I automatically recognize the patient identification number?
Hospitals use Patient IDs or case numbers to distinguish their patients. The Seca mBCA is equipped with a USB interface which enables every commercially available USB barcode scanner to be connected.
If the ID is encrypted with a barcode and is available on the patient's wrist or on a card, then the patient dataset can be loaded into the system. Since there's no need for a manual search, the workflow is faster and more convenient.

How do I enter height in the Seca mBCA?
If you know the patient's height, you can simply enter it via the touch-screen display on the Seca mBCA.

Can I use the device if my hands are too dry or covered with hand lotion?
If your hands are very dry or covered with hand lotion, the electrode recognition function will report that contact is not good enough for clinically precise measurement. Consequently, the measuring process will not begin.

The reason for this is insufficient skin resistance (impedance). In this case, you can simply moisten your hands very easily with a moist cloth to remove the lotion.

What's the appropriate way to measure body composition?

• No unusual dietary or beverage behavior outside the normal routine for the patient, on the same day prior to analysis.
• Large meals or an unusually large intake of beverages on the same day prior to assessment should also be avoided.
• The weight of heavy clothing can be deducted with the Pre-TARE function.
• For the most accurate results, the patient should be barefoot during the testing.
• The positioning of the hands and feet is dictated by the design of the device, thus the physician should check and confirm that the patient is grasping the electrodes properly.
• Measurements should not be taken within 2 hours of strenuous activity since the body's temperature is elevated and resistance in the body is altered.
• In addition, the bladder should be emptied prior to the measuring process.

How can I print the results?
The Seca mBCA can print measurements immediately after the patient has been analyzed. A series of measurements and user-defined analyses can be processed and printed by the PC software Seca analytics 115 after the measurement data is transmitted.

How are the results saved?
All results from the examinations are saved in the PC software Seca analytics 115, which is included with the purchase. The software also offers a patient database and other analytical functions. Data transmission to the PC can be made via LAN.