Reviewer's report
Title:Small intestinal bacterial overgrowth in irritable bowel syndrome: are there
any predictors?
Version: 1Date:16 February 2009
Reviewer: Stephen Vanner
Reviewer's report:
This study examines IBS patients with a "positive" GBT based on proposed
criteria and correlates this with a number of clinical parameters. More patients
who were female and over the age of 55 had an abnormal test.
Major comments.
1. There is no evidence that the proposed criteria for the GBT detect SIBO.
There is no control group and hence we do not know what proportion of patients
in the normal population would also have an abnormal test using these criteria. It
may be that using criteria an equal number of women over the age of 55 will also
have an "abnormal" test yet lack any symptoms.
Level of interest: An article of limited interest
Quality of written English: Acceptable
Statistical review: Yes, but I do not feel adequately qualified to assess the
statistics.
Declaration of competing interests:
I declare I have no competing interests.
Reviewer's report
Title:Small intestinal bacterial overgrowth in irritable bowel syndrome: are there
any predictors?
Version: 1Date:16 February 2009
Reviewer: Stephen Vanner
Reviewer's report:
This study examines IBS patients with a "positive" GBT based on proposed
criteria and correlates this with a number of clinical parameters. More patients
who were female and over the age of 55 had an abnormal test.
Major comments.
1. There is no evidence that the proposed criteria for the GBT detect SIBO.
There is no control group and hence we do not know what proportion of patients
in the normal population would also have an abnormal test using these criteria. It
may be that using criteria an equal number of women over the age of 55 will also
have an "abnormal" test yet lack any symptoms.
Level of interest: An article of limited interest
Quality of written English: Acceptable
Statistical review: Yes, but I do not feel adequately qualified to assess the
statistics.
Declaration of competing interests:
I declare I have no competing interests.
Please review this paper.
user
Reviewer's report
Title:Small intestinal bacterial overgrowth in irritable bowel syndrome: are there
any predictors?
Version: 1Date:16 February 2009
Reviewer: Stephen Vanner
Reviewer's report:
This study examines IBS patients with a "positive" GBT based on proposed
criteria and correlates this with a number of clinical parameters. More patients
who were female and over the age of 55 had an abnormal test.
Major comments.
1. There is no evidence that the proposed criteria for the GBT detect SIBO.
There is no control group and hence we do not know what proportion of patients
in the normal population would also have an abnormal test using these criteria. It
may be that using criteria an equal number of women over the age of 55 will also
have an "abnormal" test yet lack any symptoms.
Level of interest: An article of limited interest
Quality of written English: Acceptable
Statistical review: Yes, but I do not feel adequately qualified to assess the
statistics.
Declaration of competing interests:
I declare I have no competing interests.
assistant