Title: Association between gastrointestinal disorders and sleep-related problems: the mediating
effect of depression
Version: 5 Date: 07 Jul 2025
Reviewer's report:
Dear Authors,
Thank you for your thoughtful and detailed revision. I appreciate your efforts to address each
point raised in the previous review. Your updated manuscript shows substantial improvement
in clarity, statistical transparency, and methodological rigor.
Most major concerns, including the use of appropriate survey weights, mediation analysis
clarity, and avoidance of causal language, have been satisfactorily addressed. However, a few
minor issues remain that should be revised before the manuscript is ready for acceptance:
Causal Wording: While most causal expressions have been corrected, terms such as “higher
risk” or “effect” still appear in the Abstract and Discussion. To reflect the cross-sectional design,
please consistently use terms like “elevated odds” or “association” instead.
GI and Sleep Variable Limitations: The limitation of using single-item questions to capture
GI disorders and sleep disturbances should be stated more explicitly in both the Methods
and Discussion sections. For example, mention that “functional and organic GI conditions are
combined” and that sleep apnea could not be separately assessed due to data constraints.
Unmeasured Confounders: Please include a brief sentence noting that factors such as obstructive
sleep apnea, chronic pain, and hypnotic medication use could not be adjusted for due to missing
or inconsistent data in NHANES.
Table 1 Structure: Consider reorganizing Table 1 with subheadings (e.g., Demographics,
Lifestyle, Comorbidities) and moving the full version to the Supplementary Material while
presenting a concise version in the main text.
Figure Quality: Ensure that high-resolution SVG files are submitted for Figures 2 and 3. Figure
3 should include clearly visible path coefficients.
Formatting Details: Please double-check formatting consistency for statistical values (e.g., “95%
CI”), and confirm that the corresponding author’s phone number is in international format (e.g.,
“+86-…”).
These remaining revisions are minor and can be implemented without additional analyses. Once
completed, the manuscript will be suitable for publication.
Thank you again for your contributions to this important topic.
Best regards,
Title: Association between gastrointestinal disorders and sleep-related problems: the mediating
effect of depression
Version: 5 Date: 07 Jul 2025
Reviewer's report:
Dear Authors,
Thank you for your thoughtful and detailed revision. I appreciate your efforts to address each
point raised in the previous review. Your updated manuscript shows substantial improvement
in clarity, statistical transparency, and methodological rigor.
Most major concerns, including the use of appropriate survey weights, mediation analysis
clarity, and avoidance of causal language, have been satisfactorily addressed. However, a few
minor issues remain that should be revised before the manuscript is ready for acceptance:
Causal Wording: While most causal expressions have been corrected, terms such as “higher
risk” or “effect” still appear in the Abstract and Discussion. To reflect the cross-sectional design,
please consistently use terms like “elevated odds” or “association” instead.
GI and Sleep Variable Limitations: The limitation of using single-item questions to capture
GI disorders and sleep disturbances should be stated more explicitly in both the Methods
and Discussion sections. For example, mention that “functional and organic GI conditions are
combined” and that sleep apnea could not be separately assessed due to data constraints.
Unmeasured Confounders: Please include a brief sentence noting that factors such as obstructive
sleep apnea, chronic pain, and hypnotic medication use could not be adjusted for due to missing
or inconsistent data in NHANES.
Table 1 Structure: Consider reorganizing Table 1 with subheadings (e.g., Demographics,
Lifestyle, Comorbidities) and moving the full version to the Supplementary Material while
presenting a concise version in the main text.
Figure Quality: Ensure that high-resolution SVG files are submitted for Figures 2 and 3. Figure
3 should include clearly visible path coefficients.
Formatting Details: Please double-check formatting consistency for statistical values (e.g., “95%
CI”), and confirm that the corresponding author’s phone number is in international format (e.g.,
“+86-…”).
These remaining revisions are minor and can be implemented without additional analyses. Once
completed, the manuscript will be suitable for publication.
Thank you again for your contributions to this important topic.
Best regards,
Please review this paper.
user
Title: Association between gastrointestinal disorders and sleep-related problems: the mediating
effect of depression
Version: 5 Date: 07 Jul 2025
Reviewer's report:
Dear Authors,
Thank you for your thoughtful and detailed revision. I appreciate your efforts to address each
point raised in the previous review. Your updated manuscript shows substantial improvement
in clarity, statistical transparency, and methodological rigor.
Most major concerns, including the use of appropriate survey weights, mediation analysis
clarity, and avoidance of causal language, have been satisfactorily addressed. However, a few
minor issues remain that should be revised before the manuscript is ready for acceptance:
Causal Wording: While most causal expressions have been corrected, terms such as “higher
risk” or “effect” still appear in the Abstract and Discussion. To reflect the cross-sectional design,
please consistently use terms like “elevated odds” or “association” instead.
GI and Sleep Variable Limitations: The limitation of using single-item questions to capture
GI disorders and sleep disturbances should be stated more explicitly in both the Methods
and Discussion sections. For example, mention that “functional and organic GI conditions are
combined” and that sleep apnea could not be separately assessed due to data constraints.
Unmeasured Confounders: Please include a brief sentence noting that factors such as obstructive
sleep apnea, chronic pain, and hypnotic medication use could not be adjusted for due to missing
or inconsistent data in NHANES.
Table 1 Structure: Consider reorganizing Table 1 with subheadings (e.g., Demographics,
Lifestyle, Comorbidities) and moving the full version to the Supplementary Material while
presenting a concise version in the main text.
Figure Quality: Ensure that high-resolution SVG files are submitted for Figures 2 and 3. Figure
3 should include clearly visible path coefficients.
Formatting Details: Please double-check formatting consistency for statistical values (e.g., “95%
CI”), and confirm that the corresponding author’s phone number is in international format (e.g.,
“+86-…”).
These remaining revisions are minor and can be implemented without additional analyses. Once
completed, the manuscript will be suitable for publication.
Thank you again for your contributions to this important topic.
Best regards,
assistant