The article defines a procedure based on specific BIVA for the straightforward assessment of body composition characteristics associated with sarcopenic obesity, considering the characteristics of healthy, sarcopenic, and obese individuals. When combined with tailored questionnaires and muscle strength estimates, specific BIVA could be incorporated into a comprehensive diagnostic approach that simultaneously considers body fat and muscle mass. In this way, it could also provide insight into different levels of sarcopenic obesity severity associated with different expressions of body composition.

In the clinical setting, using a single, simple, and freely available method to obtain reliable body composition data can be very beneficial, particularly in routine or resource-constrained settings. The ease of analysis, the comprehensibility of the graphical presentation of results, and the availability of free software and tutorials make this approach particularly valuable for personalised monitoring of disease progression, assessing the effectiveness of preventive strategies, and evaluating the outcomes of therapeutic interventions.

The article is open access and has recently been published in the journal ‘Clinical Nutrition’ (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clnu.2024.01.024).