Reviewer's report 
 The accuracy of the report of hepatic steatosis on ultrasonography in a clinical setting: A Title: 
retrospective observational study 
 1  2 December 2004 Version: Date: 
 Bruce A Runyon Reviewer: 
Reviewer's report: 
General 
This is a "real-world" study of the sensitivity and specificity of ultrasound in detecting steatosis in the 
setting of hepatitis C, with biopsy as the gold standard. 
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Major Compulsory Revisions (that the author must respond to before a decision on publication can be reached) 
1. Hepatitis C should be included in the title. 
2. It would make the most sense to include only patients with ultrasound and biopsy (122). Why 
include those who had no biopsy? 
3. The ultrasound equipment used should be stated. Some equipment may be preferable to others 
for this purpose. 
4. Were there patients with focal fatty liver or focal fatty sparing? If so, was the biopsy directed? 
5. What was the interval from ultrasound to biopsy? If it was long, weight change during that interval 
would be relevant. 
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Minor Essential Revisions (such as missing labels on figures, or the wrong use of a term, which the 
author can be trusted to correct) 
None 
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Discretionary Revisions (which the author can choose to ignore) 
1. The authors may want to mention other imaging modalities that are better than ultrasound in 
detecting fat. 
 Unable to decide on acceptance or rejection until the authors have responded to the What next?: 
major compulsory revisions 
 An article of importance in its field Level of interest: 
 Acceptable Quality of written English: 
 No Statistical review: 
Declaration of competing interests: 
I declare that I have no competing interests 
Reviewer's report 
 The accuracy of the report of hepatic steatosis on ultrasonography in a clinical setting: A Title: 
retrospective observational study 
 1  2 December 2004 Version: Date: 
 Bruce A Runyon Reviewer: 
Reviewer's report: 
General 
This is a "real-world" study of the sensitivity and specificity of ultrasound in detecting steatosis in the 
setting of hepatitis C, with biopsy as the gold standard. 
------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
Major Compulsory Revisions (that the author must respond to before a decision on publication can be reached) 
1. Hepatitis C should be included in the title. 
2. It would make the most sense to include only patients with ultrasound and biopsy (122). Why 
include those who had no biopsy? 
3. The ultrasound equipment used should be stated. Some equipment may be preferable to others 
for this purpose. 
4. Were there patients with focal fatty liver or focal fatty sparing? If so, was the biopsy directed? 
5. What was the interval from ultrasound to biopsy? If it was long, weight change during that interval 
would be relevant. 
------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
Minor Essential Revisions (such as missing labels on figures, or the wrong use of a term, which the 
author can be trusted to correct) 
None 
------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
Discretionary Revisions (which the author can choose to ignore) 
1. The authors may want to mention other imaging modalities that are better than ultrasound in 
detecting fat. 
 Unable to decide on acceptance or rejection until the authors have responded to the What next?: 
major compulsory revisions 
 An article of importance in its field Level of interest: 
 Acceptable Quality of written English: 
 No Statistical review: 
Declaration of competing interests: 
I declare that I have no competing interests 
Please review this paper.
user
Reviewer's report 
 The accuracy of the report of hepatic steatosis on ultrasonography in a clinical setting: A Title: 
retrospective observational study 
 1  2 December 2004 Version: Date: 
 Bruce A Runyon Reviewer: 
Reviewer's report: 
General 
This is a "real-world" study of the sensitivity and specificity of ultrasound in detecting steatosis in the 
setting of hepatitis C, with biopsy as the gold standard. 
------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
Major Compulsory Revisions (that the author must respond to before a decision on publication can be reached) 
1. Hepatitis C should be included in the title. 
2. It would make the most sense to include only patients with ultrasound and biopsy (122). Why 
include those who had no biopsy? 
3. The ultrasound equipment used should be stated. Some equipment may be preferable to others 
for this purpose. 
4. Were there patients with focal fatty liver or focal fatty sparing? If so, was the biopsy directed? 
5. What was the interval from ultrasound to biopsy? If it was long, weight change during that interval 
would be relevant. 
------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
Minor Essential Revisions (such as missing labels on figures, or the wrong use of a term, which the 
author can be trusted to correct) 
None 
------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
Discretionary Revisions (which the author can choose to ignore) 
1. The authors may want to mention other imaging modalities that are better than ultrasound in 
detecting fat. 
 Unable to decide on acceptance or rejection until the authors have responded to the What next?: 
major compulsory revisions 
 An article of importance in its field Level of interest: 
 Acceptable Quality of written English: 
 No Statistical review: 
Declaration of competing interests: 
I declare that I have no competing interests 
assistant