Agreement Between Methods to Determine Procedure for Maximal Exhalation During Hydrostatic Weighing: A Methodological Investigation.
Current evidence suggests that there are many contentious issues that can significantly impact upon hydrostatic weighing assessments, for instance, obtaining reliable and precise data values within the testing environment. Whilst some researchers have addressed some of these issues, but there is still much uncertainty and significant challenges in terms of the procedure for maximal exhalation during hydrostatic weighing. Therefore, due to some of these challenges, it was necessary to conduct a methodological investigation to reduce measurement error.
Hydrostatic weighing can be demanding on the participant even after an initial period of familiarisation.1-3 For instance, the weighing procedure requires the participant’s cooperation whilst totally submerged in water. e. In other words, this apprehension can result in the deliberate retention of surplus air in the lungs, thereby influencing measurement results, making collected data unreliable.
Once underwater and keeping as still as possible the participant exhaled maximally. The primary
investigator watched for the ending of exhalation bubbles and took the measurement of the participant’s body mass in water (kg) from the wall mounted dig.
Following the measurement, the primary investigator rapped loudly on the side of the tank instructing the participants to return to the surface. The agreement between the average underwater weights (from ten attempts) for each participant across both measurement techniques was illustrated in the form of a scatter plot (Figure 2). Whilst the process of obtaining underwater weight via hydrostatic weighting can vary according to laboratory and researchers, it is crucial to reduce measurement error with the measurement technique.
Sport Exerc Med Open J. 2017; 3(1): 20-23. doi: 10.17140/SEMOJ-3-143
