Intra- and interobserver variability in skeletal muscle measurements using computed tomography images

Highlights: • Research studies increasingly include body composition measurements. • The reproducibility of a common approach was investigated. • Intra- and interobserver agreement was generally good. • Specific measures to minimise variability are described. - Abstract: PurposeThe progressive loss of skeletal muscle and function (known as sarcopenia) has been shown to be associated with various adverse outcome measures. Sophisticated measurements of body composition are increasingly being incorporated into research studies to stratify patients into those with or without sarcopenia, monitor treatment effects, and predict complications. A typical approach is to select axial image(s) at the mid-lumbar level and use semi-automated software to identify and quantify the skeletal muscle area. This area is then used to estimate whole-body parameters. This approach is somewhat subjective, and in this study we investigate its reproducibility, both within and between observers.