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Bone strength is the result of its material composition and structural design, particularly bone mass distribution. The purpose of this study was to analyze femoral neck bone mass distribution by Ward's area location and its relationship with physical activity (PA) and body composition in children 8 and 9 years of age. The proximal femur shape was defined by geometric morphometric analysis in 88 participants (48 boys and 40 girls). Using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) images, 18 landmarks were digitized to define the proximal femur shape and to identify Ward's area position. Body weight, lean and fat mass, and bone mineral were assessed by DXA, PA by accelerometry, and bone age by the Tanner-Whitehouse III method. Warps analysis with Thin-Plate Spline software showed that the first axis explained 63% of proximal femur shape variation in boys and 58% in girls. Most of this variation was associated with differences in Ward's area location, from the central zone to the superior aspect of the femoral neck in both genders. Regression analysis demonstrated that body composition explained 4% to 7% of the proximal femur shape variation in girls. In boys, body composition variables explained a similar amount of variance, but moderate plus vigorous PA (MVPA) also accounted for 6% of proximal femur shape variation. In conclusion, proximal femur shape variation in children ages 8 and 9 was due mainly to differences in Ward's area position determined, in part, by body composition in both genders and by MVPA in boys. These variables were positively associated with a central Ward's area and thus with a more balanced femoral neck bone mass distribution., (© 2010 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.)

This study examined the predictive validity of musculoskeletal fitness tests for identifying sarcopenia in youth. The sample was 529 participants age 10 to 18 years. Indices included: total lean body mass (LBM) normalized for height (LBM index, LBMI, kg/m2), appendicular LBMI (aLBMI, kg/m[superscript 2]), and LBM to fat body mass (FBM) ratio (LBM/FBM). Lean and fat tissue were measured via DXA. The cutoff value for sarcopenia was -- 2.0 standard deviations [less than or equal to] mean for age and sex. Fitness was assessed using handgrip, plank, and vertical jump tests. Variables were standardized using the lambda-mu-sigma (LMS) method. By sex, analysis included the area under the curve (AUC), sensitivity (Se), and specificity (Sp). The ROC curves for aLBMI was highly accurate (AUCs [greater than or equal to] 0.90, Se and Sp = 86-88%) for vertical jump and moderately accurate for handgrip (AUCs = 0.87-0.88, Se and Sp = 71-75%). Fitness tests can be used to identify pediatric sarcopenia.