Open AccessBioelectrical Impedance Phase Angle as a Prognostic Indicator of Survival in Head-and-Neck Cancer
Author(s) -
M Wladysiuk,
Radosław Mlak,
Kamal Morshed,
Wojciech Surtel,
Anna Brzozowska,
Teresa MałeckaMassalska
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
current oncology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.053
H-Index - 51
eISSN - 1718-7729
pISSN - 1198-0052
DOI - 10.3747/co.23.3181
Subject(s) - medicine , bioelectrical impedance analysis , phase angle (astronomy) , head and neck cancer , otorhinolaryngology , cohort , confidence interval , hazard ratio , survival analysis , cohort study , surgery , population , cancer , body mass index , environmental health , astronomy , physics
Background: Phase angle could be an alternative to subjective global assessment for the assessment of nutrition status in patients with head-and-neck cancer. Methods: We prospectively evaluated a cohort of 75 stage IIIB and IV head-and-neck patients treated at the Otolaryngology Department, Head and Neck Surgery, Medical University of Lublin, Poland. Bioelectrical impedance analysis was performed in all patients using an analyzer that operated at 50 kHz. The phase angle was calculated as reactance divided by resistance (Xc/R) and expressed in degrees. The Kaplan–Meier method was used to calculate survival. Results: Median overall survival in the cohort was 32.0 months. At the time of analysis, 47 deaths had been recorded in the cohort (62.7%). The risk of shortened overall survival was significantly higher in patients whose phase angle was less than 4.733 degrees than in the remaining patients (19.6 months vs. 45 months, p = 0.0489; chi-square: 3.88; hazard ratio: 1.8856; 95% confidence interval: 1.0031 to 3.5446). Conclusions: Phase angle might be prognostic of survival in patients with advanced head-and-neck cancer. Further investigation in a larger population is required to confirm our results.