title: Identifying gaps for research prioritisation: Global burden of external causes of injury as reflected in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Burden of disease should impact research prioritisation.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To analyse the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (CDSR) and determine whether systematic reviews and protocols accurately represent disease burden, as measured by disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2010 Study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Two investigators collected GBD disability metrics for 12 external causes of injury in the GBD 2010 Study. These external causes were then assessed for systematic review and protocol representation in CDSR. Data was collected during the month of April 2015. There were no study participants aside from the researchers. Percentage of total 2010 DALYs, 2010 DALY rank, and median DALY percent change from 1990 to 2010 of the 12 external causes of injury were compared with CDSR representation of systematic reviews and protocols. Data were analysed for correlation using Spearman rank correlation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Eleven of the 12 causes were represented by at least one systematic review or protocol in CDSR; the category collective violence and legal intervention had no representation in CDSR. Correlation testing revealed a strong positive correlation that was statistically significant. Representation of road injury; interpersonal violence; fire, heat, and hot substances; mechanical forces; poisonings, adverse effect of medical treatment, and animal contact was well aligned with respect to DALY. Representation of falls was greater compared to DALY, while self-harm, exposure to forces of nature, and other transport injury representation was lower compared to DALY.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  CDSR representation of external causes of injury strongly correlates with disease burden. The number of systematic reviews and protocols was well aligned for seven out of 12 causes of injury. These results provide high-quality and transparent data that may guide future prioritisation decisions.
authors.affiliation: Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Chante
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Karimkhani
authors.affiliation: Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL, USA.
authors.forename: Ritika
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Trikha
authors.affiliation: Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Baran
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Aksut
authors.affiliation: University of Arizona College of Medicine, Tucson, AZ, USA.
authors.forename: Trevor
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.affiliation: Georgetown University School of Medicine, Washington DC, USA.
authors.forename: Lindsay N
authors.initials: LN
authors.lastname: Boyers
authors.affiliation: Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Megan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Schlichte
authors.affiliation: University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO, USA.
authors.forename: Hannah
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Pederson
authors.affiliation: University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO, USA.
authors.forename: Tyler
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Okland
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Colorado School of Public Health, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, CO, USA.
authors.forename: Carolyn
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: DiGuiseppi
authors.affiliation: Peninsula Dental School, Plymouth University, Plymouth, UK.
authors.forename: Mona
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nasser
authors.affiliation: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.
authors.forename: Mohsen
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Naghavi
authors.affiliation: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.
authors.forename: Theo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Vos
authors.affiliation: Hunter New England Population Health, NSW, Australia; The University of Newcastle, NSW, Australia.
authors.forename: Sze Lin
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Yoong
authors.affiliation: Hunter New England Population Health, NSW, Australia; The University of Newcastle, NSW, Australia.
authors.forename: Luke
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wolfenden
authors.affiliation: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.
authors.forename: Christopher J L
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Murray
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Colorado School of Public Health, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, CO, USA; Department of Dermatology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, CO, USA; Department of Dermatology, Denver Veterans Administration Hospital, CO, USA. Electronic address: robert.dellavalle@ucdenver.edu.
authors.forename: Robert P
authors.initials: RP
authors.lastname: Dellavalle
mesh_terms: D017281:Cost of Illness; D016208:Databases, Factual; D006233:Persons with Disabilities / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D019057:Quality-Adjusted Life Years; D012106:Research; D012196:Review Literature as Topic; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000191:economics / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology* / Q000523:psychology
keywords: Burden of disease; Cochrane; DALY; Disability; Epidemiology; Injury; Systematic review; Trauma