PONE-D-24-38438Assessing the impact of apnea duration on the relationship between obstructive sleep apnea and hearing lossPLOS ONE

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Reviewers' comments:

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Comments to the Author

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Reviewer #1: Yes

Reviewer #2: Yes

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2. Has the statistical analysis been performed appropriately and rigorously?

Reviewer #1: Yes

Reviewer #2: Yes

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Reviewer #1: Yes

Reviewer #2: Yes

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Reviewer #1: Yes

Reviewer #2: Yes

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5. Review Comments to the Author

Please use the space provided to explain your answers to the questions above. You may also include additional comments for the author, including concerns about dual publication, research ethics, or publication ethics. (Please upload your review as an attachment if it exceeds 20,000 characters)

Reviewer #1: Introduction:

- Give additional background on the clinical significance of investigating the connection between OSA and hearing loss.

- Clearly state why the length of apnea is a significant aspect. cite doi:10.3390/ijerph19042459

- At the conclusion of the introduction, provide a more detailed statement of the study's precise hypotheses or aims.

Methods:

- Give more information about the inclusion and exclusion criteria as well as patient recruitment.

- Justify the selection of 90 OSA patients as the sample size.

- Give a more thorough explanation of the statistical analysis, focusing on the multiple regression method.

Results:

- Use subheadings to make the results easier to understand and present them in a more structured manner.

- When applicable, provide confidence intervals in addition to p-values.

- Take into account include a graph illustrating the connection between the length of apnea and hearing loss.

Discussion:

- Talk about the findings' clinical implications in greater detail.

- Make a thorough comparison and contrast between the findings and earlier research on OSA and hearing loss. cite doi:10.12659/msm.897347.

- Go into further detail about the study's limitations, including any potential confounding variables that were overlooked.

- Make more precise suggestions for future lines of inquiry.

Conclusion

- Rewrite the conclusion to make it more impactful and succinct.

- Make a clearer emphasis on the study's significance and main innovative findings.

Reviewer #2: Very good work on controlling for factors with adequate matching.

Including a low-risk SBQ result in the control group as a criterion for acceptance shows the robustness of the methodology.

The conclusion of the abstract is misleading, which findings underscore the HL? The reserach findings underscore? or is the previously suspected HL on the OSA patients what is underscored ?

I recommend rewording this concept.

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Reviewer #1: Yes: Antonino

Reviewer #2: No

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Assessing the impact of apnea duration on the relationship between obstructive sleep apnea and hearing loss

PONE-D-24-38438R1

Dear Dr. Jeon Mi Lee,

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.

Within one week, you’ll receive an e-mail detailing the required amendments. When these have been addressed, you’ll receive a formal acceptance letter and your manuscript will be scheduled for publication.

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Kind regards,

Giovanni Cammaroto

Academic Editor

PLOS ONE

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