Title: Overweight and vitamin D deficiency are common in patients with irritable bowel
syndrome. A cross-sectional study
Version: 5 Date: 10 Jul 2024
Reviewer's report:
1. There are still several instances of language and grammatical errors. E.g., the term
'overweighted' is wrong, "In conclusion, IBS patients were often overweighted or obese with
low vitamin D levels". Instead it should be "In conclusion, IBS patients were often overweight
or obese with low vitamin D levels." Similarly, instead of writing "Participants both patients
and controls completed ...", it should be simply "Both patients and controls completed ..." Please
perform a close copyediting of the entire manuscript.
2. How was the sample size for the control and study group decided? The small control group
(n=50) compared to the IBS group (n=260) reduces the statistical power of the study and
increases the risk of Type II errors. This imbalance also complicates the generalizability of the
findings.
3. "The age (p=0.094), sex distribution (p=0.257), weight (p=0.862), education (p=0.488),
smoking habits (p=0.984), alcohol intake (p=0.661), or physical activity (p=0.636) were equal
between the two IBS cohorts" - Where are these results reported in the tables? How was 'physical
activity' quantified?
4. "We have previously published that several IBS patients have poor dietary habits [62]" - What
about the use of 'self-prescribed' elimination diets?
5. "The small control cohort, with controls from hospital staff and students is a limit ..." - It
should be 'limitation' and not 'limit'.
6. The statement "However, only validated questionnaires were used, to minimize confounding
factors" is problematic for several reasons. The validation of a questionnaire ensures that the tool
measures what it is intended to measure reliably and accurately. However, it does not inherently
minimize confounding factors. Confounding factors are external variables that can affect the
relationship between the independent and dependent variables. To minimize confounding,
proper study design and statistical control methods are required.
Title: Overweight and vitamin D deficiency are common in patients with irritable bowel
syndrome. A cross-sectional study
Version: 5 Date: 10 Jul 2024
Reviewer's report:
1. There are still several instances of language and grammatical errors. E.g., the term
'overweighted' is wrong, "In conclusion, IBS patients were often overweighted or obese with
low vitamin D levels". Instead it should be "In conclusion, IBS patients were often overweight
or obese with low vitamin D levels." Similarly, instead of writing "Participants both patients
and controls completed ...", it should be simply "Both patients and controls completed ..." Please
perform a close copyediting of the entire manuscript.
2. How was the sample size for the control and study group decided? The small control group
(n=50) compared to the IBS group (n=260) reduces the statistical power of the study and
increases the risk of Type II errors. This imbalance also complicates the generalizability of the
findings.
3. "The age (p=0.094), sex distribution (p=0.257), weight (p=0.862), education (p=0.488),
smoking habits (p=0.984), alcohol intake (p=0.661), or physical activity (p=0.636) were equal
between the two IBS cohorts" - Where are these results reported in the tables? How was 'physical
activity' quantified?
4. "We have previously published that several IBS patients have poor dietary habits [62]" - What
about the use of 'self-prescribed' elimination diets?
5. "The small control cohort, with controls from hospital staff and students is a limit ..." - It
should be 'limitation' and not 'limit'.
6. The statement "However, only validated questionnaires were used, to minimize confounding
factors" is problematic for several reasons. The validation of a questionnaire ensures that the tool
measures what it is intended to measure reliably and accurately. However, it does not inherently
minimize confounding factors. Confounding factors are external variables that can affect the
relationship between the independent and dependent variables. To minimize confounding,
proper study design and statistical control methods are required.
Please review this paper.
user
Title: Overweight and vitamin D deficiency are common in patients with irritable bowel
syndrome. A cross-sectional study
Version: 5 Date: 10 Jul 2024
Reviewer's report:
1. There are still several instances of language and grammatical errors. E.g., the term
'overweighted' is wrong, "In conclusion, IBS patients were often overweighted or obese with
low vitamin D levels". Instead it should be "In conclusion, IBS patients were often overweight
or obese with low vitamin D levels." Similarly, instead of writing "Participants both patients
and controls completed ...", it should be simply "Both patients and controls completed ..." Please
perform a close copyediting of the entire manuscript.
2. How was the sample size for the control and study group decided? The small control group
(n=50) compared to the IBS group (n=260) reduces the statistical power of the study and
increases the risk of Type II errors. This imbalance also complicates the generalizability of the
findings.
3. "The age (p=0.094), sex distribution (p=0.257), weight (p=0.862), education (p=0.488),
smoking habits (p=0.984), alcohol intake (p=0.661), or physical activity (p=0.636) were equal
between the two IBS cohorts" - Where are these results reported in the tables? How was 'physical
activity' quantified?
4. "We have previously published that several IBS patients have poor dietary habits [62]" - What
about the use of 'self-prescribed' elimination diets?
5. "The small control cohort, with controls from hospital staff and students is a limit ..." - It
should be 'limitation' and not 'limit'.
6. The statement "However, only validated questionnaires were used, to minimize confounding
factors" is problematic for several reasons. The validation of a questionnaire ensures that the tool
measures what it is intended to measure reliably and accurately. However, it does not inherently
minimize confounding factors. Confounding factors are external variables that can affect the
relationship between the independent and dependent variables. To minimize confounding,
proper study design and statistical control methods are required.
assistant