title: Young, male, road traffic victims: a systematic review of the published trauma registry literature from low and middle income countries.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Trauma contributes significantly to the global burden of disease. We analysed published trauma registries to assess the demographics of those most affected in low and middle-income countries (LMICs).
  
  
  METHODS
  We performed a systematic review of published trauma registry studies according to PRISMA guidelines. We included published full-text articles from trauma registries in low and middle-income countries describing the demographics of trauma registry patients. Articles from military trauma registries, articles using data not principally derived from trauma registry data, articles describing patients of only one demographic (e.g. only paediatric patients), or only one mechanism of injury, trauma registry implementation papers without demographic data, review papers and conference proceedings were excluded.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The initial search retrieved 1868 abstracts of which 1324 remained after duplicate removal. After screening the abstracts, 78 full-text articles were scrutinised for their suitability for inclusion. Twenty three papers from 14 countries, including 103,327 patients, were deemed eligible and included for analysis. The median age of trauma victims in these articles was 27 years (IQR 25-29). The median percentage of trauma victims who were male was 75 (IQR 66-84). The median percentage of road traffic injuries (RTIs) as a percentage of total injuries caused by trauma was 46 (IQR 21-71).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Young, male, road traffic victims represent a large proportion of the LMIC trauma burden. This information can inform and be used by local and national governments to implement road safety measures and other strategies aimed at reducing the injury rate in young males.
authors.affiliation: The MSk Lab, Imperial College London London SW7 2AZ UK.
authors.forename: Oliver
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Boughton
authors.affiliation: The MSk Lab, Imperial College London London SW7 2AZ UK.
authors.forename: Gareth G
authors.initials: GG
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.affiliation: Nuffield Department of Orthopaedics, Rheumatology and Musculoskeletal Sciences, Oxford University Oxford OX1 2JD UK.
authors.forename: Christopher B D
authors.initials: CB
authors.lastname: Lavy
authors.affiliation: King's Centre for Global Health, King's College London London WC2R 2LS UK.
authors.forename: Caris E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Grimes
keywords: Low and middle-income countries; Trauma registry