Ultrasound Detection of Body Composition in Critical Care

September 2, 2026 updated by: Ain Shams University

Detection of the Changes in Body Composition of Critically Ill Obstetrics by Ultrasound and the Co-relations With Clinical Outcomes; a Prospective Observational Study.

Objective assessment of the Changes in body composition of critically ill patients is very valuable. Ultrasound stands as a solution due to its portability, bedside availability, and radiation-free technology. Those criteria are crucial for critically ill obstetrics and gynecological cases.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

Patients with acute/critical illness are particularly vulnerable to muscle loss and fluid shifts, which adversely impact clinical outcomes. Assessment of these parameters in hospital settings is often subjective and imprecise, which creates discrepancies in identification and difficulty in follow-up.

The decrease in muscle mass and/or change in the composition, and fluid overload adversely impact the clinical outcome in critically ill patients and their recovery. There is growing interest in body composition (BC) assessment techniques that can be applied in ICU settings. whole-body BC estimates, and select BC variables show promise as biomarkers of muscle health, nutrition risk, and fluid status. Studies reported that Quadriceps muscle thickness predicted increased morbidity/mortality in ICU patients and has been suggested to be an objective biomarker to determine fitness for aggressive treatment. US measures of muscle loss in the critically ill will aid in the development of appropriate intervention strategies. Alternatively, qualitative muscle evaluation through the measure of echogenicity (using image gray-scale visual analysis) is a sensitive indicator of muscle atrophy. The ultrasound can contribute to assessing necrosis, fatty infiltration, and inflammation in place of invasive muscle biopsy in critically ill patients. Ultrasound offers an important tool for early non-volitional assessment of muscle function in the critically ill.

US characterization of muscle changes would facilitate the development and monitoring of muscle-targeted nutrition and physical therapy interventions. Knowing body muscle and adipose tissue mass is essential in several clinical situations to adapt drug dose to the volume of distribution and to guide nutrition as well as physical therapy. US imaging is a practical method for the prospective assessment of SM (skeletal muscle) changes in response to illness and treatment. Previous ICU studies have focused on measurements of muscle quantity (muscle thickness and CSA) in both the quadriceps, a muscle region known to be rapidly impacted by sarcopenia, and to correlate with ICU survival. Ultrasound has been used primarily as a tool for body composition measurement in clinical nutrition. Although many recent reports have demonstrated that ultrasound could be a useful tool for nutritional assessment and body composition assessment, it is not well incorporated into ICU practice regarding nutritional assessment and follow-up This trial is the first to investigate the role of ultrasound in detecting body composition in critically ill obstetrics and gynecological cases and its correlation with clinical outcomes.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Observational

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
121

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Locations

  • Egypt
    • Cairo Governorate
      • Cairo, Cairo Governorate, Egypt, 11528

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Child
  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sampling Method

Probability Sample

Study Population

Critically ill women whether pregnant, peripartum, postoperative, or admitted for any critical illness.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • females with age 16 with no upper limit
  • American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) class I, II or III,
  • admitted to the obstetrics and Gynecology critical care unit

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Patient refusal

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort

Group / Cohort

A group or subgroup of participants in an observational study that is assessed for biomedical or health outcomes.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
critically ill obstetrics patients , admitted to ICU
Diagnostic test: ultrasound detection of body composition
Muscle mass and fat thickness assessed at two representative sites (rectus femoris, biceps brachii) per USVALID (Arabella, 2020). Muscle quality graded via validated 4-point Heckmatt echogenicity scale (Grade 1=normal, Grade 4=severe; full criteria in Outcome Measures).Subcutaneous fat thickness(mm) measured on rectus femoris. FLUID protocol for oedema: 36-site USEG 5-point scale . Day 0, day 2, then every 2 days untill at in-stay deterioration or death or discharge.
critically ill gynecological cases, admitted to ICU
Diagnostic test: ultrasound detection of body composition
Muscle mass and fat thickness assessed at two representative sites (rectus femoris, biceps brachii) per USVALID (Arabella, 2020). Muscle quality graded via validated 4-point Heckmatt echogenicity scale (Grade 1=normal, Grade 4=severe; full criteria in Outcome Measures).Subcutaneous fat thickness(mm) measured on rectus femoris. FLUID protocol for oedema: 36-site USEG 5-point scale . Day 0, day 2, then every 2 days untill at in-stay deterioration or death or discharge.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
change in body composition-muscular element
Time Frame: on the day of admission , repeated every 2 days till death or discharge which come first, assessed up to 20 days from admission
Change in muscle thickness (mm) and change in muscle quality, assessed by ultrasound echogenicity at two representative sites: rectus femoris (lower limb) and biceps brachii (upper limb). Muscle quality is graded using the validated four-point Heckmatt scale: Grade 1 = normal echogenicity with distinct bone reflection; Grade 2 = increased echogenicity with preserved architecture and normal bone reflection; Grade 3 = further increased echogenicity with some loss of architecture and reduced bone reflection; Grade 4 = markedly increased echogenicity with total loss of architecture and absent bone reflection. A derived ordinal muscle severity category is calculated from the highest grade observed across the two sites.
on the day of admission , repeated every 2 days till death or discharge which come first, assessed up to 20 days from admission
change in body composition-fat element
Time Frame: on the day of admission , repeated every 2 days till death or discharge which come first, assessed up to 20 days from admission.
change in thickness of subcutaneous fat measured in mm. A derived categorical adiposity classification (low, normal, or high adipose reserve) is also calculated from this measurement.
on the day of admission , repeated every 2 days till death or discharge which come first, assessed up to 20 days from admission.
change in body composition-extreacellular oedema element
Time Frame: on the day of admission , repeated every 2 days till death or discharge which come first .
The examiner will use a 5-point scale of ultrasonic subcutaneous edema grade (USEG) to evaluate subcutaneous edema at each site based on echo intensity, tissue transparency, and fluid properties. The final ultrasonic subcutaneous edema score (USES) is calculated by adding scores from 36 subcutaneous sites (0-144), regionally grouped: hands (0-8), arms (0-16), thoracic wall (0-32), abdominal wall (0-32), thigh (0-24), calves (0-24), feet (0-8), with regional totals averaged to a 0-4 score per region. Lower scores indicate lower oedema severity. A derived categorical oedema severity classification is also calculated from the total score.
on the day of admission , repeated every 2 days till death or discharge which come first .

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
co-relation of the change of any elements of body composition with poor outcomes suchs such as death, need for ventilatory or circulatory support or increase the length of stay in icu.
Time Frame: from occurence of change in body composition till the poor outcome. till discharge from icu or death which come first, assessed till 20 days from admission
Positive or negative correlation between change in any body composition element (muscular, fat, extracellular oedema) and poor clinical outcomes, measured by frequency of occurrence of poor outcomes in patients with positive change in any element. The muscle, oedema, and adiposity classifications above are combined into a single five-category bedside phenotype (Resilient, Vulnerable, Oedematous, Metabolically Compromised, Extreme Metabolic Risk), assessed at admission and at the point of in-stay deterioration; this composite phenotype is the primary exposure examined against outcome. Poor outcome is defined as a composite of mortality, need for ventilatory support, or need for circulatory support. ICU length of stay is analyzed separately as a continuous outcome. Additional outcomes recorded include failed extubation, need for renal replacement therapy, and need for blood transfusion
from occurence of change in body composition till the poor outcome. till discharge from icu or death which come first, assessed till 20 days from admission

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Ain Shams University

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
December 15, 2024

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
October 25, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
December 1, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
October 19, 2024

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
December 6, 2024

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
December 11, 2024

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
September 4, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
September 2, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
September 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • FMASU R149/2024

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

YES

IPD Sharing Time Frame

it will be available after completion and acceptance from a peer reviewed journal and upon reasonable request

IPD Sharing Access Criteria

upon reasonable request from one of the authors.

IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type

  • STUDY_PROTOCOL

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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