PONE-D-21-04728

Risk factors in adolescents as predictors of arterial hypertension in adults: protocol for a systematic review

PLOS ONE

Dear Dr. Costa,

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Johannes Vogel

Academic Editor

PLOS ONE

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Reviewers' comments:

Reviewer's Responses to Questions

Comments to the Author

1. Does the manuscript provide a valid rationale for the proposed study, with clearly identified and justified research questions?

The research question outlined is expected to address a valid academic problem or topic and contribute to the base of knowledge in the field.

Reviewer #1: Yes

Reviewer #2: Yes

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2. Is the protocol technically sound and planned in a manner that will lead to a meaningful outcome and allow testing the stated hypotheses?

The manuscript should describe the methods in sufficient detail to prevent undisclosed flexibility in the experimental procedure or analysis pipeline, including sufficient outcome-neutral conditions (e.g. necessary controls, absence of floor or ceiling effects) to test the proposed hypotheses and a statistical power analysis where applicable. As there may be aspects of the methodology and analysis which can only be refined once the work is undertaken, authors should outline potential assumptions and explicitly describe what aspects of the proposed analyses, if any, are exploratory.

Reviewer #1: Partly

Reviewer #2: Yes

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3. Is the methodology feasible and described in sufficient detail to allow the work to be replicable?

Descriptions of methods and materials in the protocol should be reported in sufficient detail for another researcher to reproduce all experiments and analyses. The protocol should describe the appropriate controls, sample size calculations, and replication needed to ensure that the data are robust and reproducible.

Reviewer #1: No

Reviewer #2: Yes

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4. Have the authors described where all data underlying the findings will be made available when the study is complete?

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Reviewer #1: No

Reviewer #2: Yes

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5. Is the manuscript presented in an intelligible fashion and written in standard English?

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Reviewer #1: Yes

Reviewer #2: Yes

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6. Review Comments to the Author

Please use the space provided to explain your answers to the questions above and, if applicable, provide comments about issues authors must address before this protocol can be accepted for publication. You may also include additional comments for the author, including concerns about research or publication ethics.

You may also provide optional suggestions and comments to authors that they might find helpful in planning their study.

(Please upload your review as an attachment if it exceeds 20,000 characters)

Reviewer #1: This manuscript contains a plan to review literature to identify childhood predictors of adult hypertension. However, no data was presented. I am unclear as to the rationale for submitting this preliminary work for publication given that there are no results and nothing meaningful will be contributed to the published literature on this subject.

Reviewer #2: Pg 1 – Please explain numbers 1 and 3 in the affiliation - for the first and last authors.

Pg 2- Background – P 2 – “HBP is defined by sustained blood pressure (BP) levels above systolic 140 or diastolic 90 mmHg (millimeters of mercury), or both.” – Please review the definition.

In accordance with most major guidelines it is recommended that hypertension be diagnosed when a person’s systolic blood pressure in the office is ≥ 140 mm Hg and/or their diastolic blood pressure is ≥ 90 mm Hg. This definition does not apply to the United States. In the 2017 ACC/AHA guideline, hypertension is defined as BP ≥130 and / or ≥80 mm Hg.

Another important thing is that these definitions apply to adults ≥ 18 years of age.

For the adolescents, what definition do you intend to use?

Pg 5 - If the included population consists of adolescents aged between 12 to 17 years and the outcomes are measured at adulthood (age over 19 years), how are considered subjects aged 18 years – adolescents or adults?

Pg 5 row 108 – a bracket is missing

Pg 5 row 113 – a space and a comma in addition

Pg 5 – Search methods – “The databases to be searched will include Embase, LILACS, ADOLEC, MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, and bibliographic citations. “ What will be the selection criteria for “bibliographic citations” ?

Pg 5 - There may be too many search terms.

I recommend not using the term “skin pigmentation” ; this is not a risk factor for the purpose of this review.

Pg 7 – “The initial deadline for completion is April 2021.”

A new deadline must be set.

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Reviewer #1: No

Reviewer #2: No

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Risk factors in adolescents as predictors of arterial hypertension in adults: protocol for a systematic review

PONE-D-21-04728R1

Dear Dr. Costa,

We’re pleased to inform you that your manuscript has been judged scientifically suitable for publication and will be formally accepted for publication once it meets all outstanding technical requirements.

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Kind regards,

Johannes Vogel

Academic Editor

PLOS ONE

Additional Editor Comments (optional):

Reviewers' comments: