Examination of postural dependence in subcutaneous fat thickness measurement using a caliper

Background Standing is the standard position for measuring subcutaneous fat thickness; however, the feasibility and reliability of measurements in other positions remain unclear. Therefore, we examined the effects of body position on measured values and their reliability using a metal caliper. Methods Ten healthy men participated. Measurement sites were the lumbar region and medial lower leg. Positions included standing, sitting, prone, lateral, and supine (all except supine for the lumbar region). Each site was measured twice by the same examiner. Reliability was assessed using intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC[1, 1] and ICC[1, 3]). Results For the lumbar region, both ICCs exceeded 0.90. Mean thicknesses were 3.7–3.9 mm (lumbar) and 4.1–4.4 mm (lower leg). While main effects of position were significant in both regions, post-hoc comparisons in the lumbar region showed significant differences only between standing and lateral, and standing and prone. Overall effect sizes were very small (Cohen’s d = 0.00–0.19). Although minor positional differences were observed, the effect sizes were negligible. Conclusions The lack of substantial differences among positions suggests that subcutaneous fat thickness can be reliably measured using a metal caliper regardless of body position.