Bioelectrical impedance parameters in critically ill children: importance of reactance and resistance.

Background & Aims: Currently, there are no clinical or laboratory parameters that can be used efficiently to predict the prognosis of critically ill patients, but in some situations, raw bioelectrical impedance parameters have been shown to be useful. The purpose of this study was to investigate the behavior of reactance and resistance in the severity of the critically ill pediatric patient.

Methods: We prospectively analyzed bioelectrical impedance in a sample of 332 critically ill pediatric patients submitted to mechanical ventilation.