This viewpoint describes the lack of funding for trauma research as a possible cause of increasing mortality rates from traumatic injury. In a seminal 1966 report, the National Research Council (NRC) declared that unintentional injury is the "neglected epidemic of modern society [and] the nation's most important environmental health problem." The report noted that traumatic injuries were the leading cause of death for Americans younger than 40 years. At that time, 52 million unintentional injuries (excluding suicides) killed 107 000 people, temporarily disabled more than 10 million, and permanently impaired 400 000 American citizens at a cost of approximately $18 billion each year.

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