LAUSR

&NA; As a component of the National Population Health Study of Neurological conditions, systematic reviews were conducted to identify risk factors associated with the onset and progression of 14 priority neurological conditions. Between 2011 and 2013, electronic databases and grey literature sources were searched to identify systematic reviews and primary studies reporting on the onset and progression of each condition. Inclusion was restricted to studies of humans reported in English or French. Additional condition‐specific eligibility criteria were also applied. Titles and abstracts were screened by one reviewer with excluded records verified by a second reviewer. Full‐text reports were screened independently by two reviewers. Disagreements were resolved by consensus or third party adjudication. Systematic reviews were quality appraised using the AMSTAR criteria, with only moderate and high quality reviews considered for inclusion. Primary studies were also sought to ensure that evidence from existing systematic reviews was supplemented with recent primary study findings (i.e., those published after the most recent systematic review). Evidence from primary studies was also considered if a systematic review was unavailable or of poor quality. Data were extracted using standardized forms. Where feasible, data were extracted independently by two reviewers. Otherwise, data were extracted by a single reviewer and independent data extraction by a second reviewer was conducted for a randomly selected sample of studies. An updated search was conducted in 2016 to identify systematic reviews published since the initial search in 2011–2013. A summary of the methodology used to conduct the systematic reviews is described. Illustrative results are provided for the risk of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in relation to occupational exposure to lead and other heavy metals HighlightsFormal methods of systematic review were used to identify scientific publications on factors affecting the onset and progression of 14 priority neurological conditions according to pre‐defined search terms and appropriate inclusion/exclusion criteria.Distiller SR was used for data abstraction, and preparation of summary tables on the results of the systematic review.In cases where the volume of literature was large, results from pre‐existing high quality systematic reviews were updated.Where possible, meta‐analyses of multiple studies on the same risk factor were conducted.Syntheses of the findings across all 14 priority neurological conditions were also prepared.