The Accuracy of Google Translate for Abstracting Data From Non–English-Language Trials for Systematic Reviews
Authors: Jeffrey L Jackson, Akira Kuriyama, Andreea Anton, April Choi, Jean-Pascal Fournier, Anne-Kathrin Geier, Frederique Jacquerioz, Dmitry Kogan, Cecilia Scholcoff, Rao Sun
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2019)

Letters5 November 2019The Accuracy of Google Translate for Abstracting Data From Non–English-Language Trials for Systematic ReviewsJeffrey L Jackson, MD, MPH, Akira Kuriyama, MD, MPH, Andreea Anton, MD, April Choi, MD, Jean-Pascal Fournier, MD, PhD, Anne-Kathrin Geier, MD, MPH, Frederique Jacquerioz, MD, MPH, Dmitry Kogan, MD, Cecilia Scholcoff, MD, MPH, and Rao Sun, MD, PhDJeffrey L Jackson, MD, MPHMedical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Wisconsin (J.L.J., A.A., D.K., C.S.), Akira Kuriyama, MD, MPHKurashiki Central Hospital, Okayama, Japan (A.K.), Andreea Anton, MDMedical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Wisconsin (J.L.J., A.A., D.K., C.S.), April Choi, MDRutgers New Jersey Medical School, Newark, New Jersey (A.C.), Jean-Pascal Fournier, MD, PhDUniversité de Nantes, Nantes, France (J.F.), Anne-Kathrin Geier, MD, MPHUniversity of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany (A.G.), Frederique Jacquerioz, MD, MPHHôpital Universitaire de Genéve, Geneva, Switzerland (F.J.), Dmitry Kogan, MDMedical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Wisconsin (J.L.J., A.A., D.K., C.S.), Cecilia Scholcoff, MD, MPHMedical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Wisconsin (J.L.J., A.A., D.K., C.S.), and Rao Sun, MD, PhDTongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, and Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Hubei, China (R.S.)Author, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/M19-0891 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail Background: A critical marker of high-quality systematic reviews is the identification and inclusion of all relevant, important studies. Up to 78% of systematic reviews have language restrictions; as a consequence, most reviews (93%) exclude at least 1 randomized controlled trial (RCT) (1). A 2012 study assessing Google Translate for translating non–English-language studies recommended caution in using this service (2). Recently, Google updated its translation engine, reporting that it is markedly more accurate than previous versions (3).Objective: To examine the agreement between native-language and Google-translated abstractions of clinical trials published in languages other than English.Methods and Findings: We searched ...References1. Jackson JL, Kuriyama A. How often do systematic reviews exclude articles not published in English? [Letter]. J Gen Intern Med. 2019. [PMID: 31011958] doi:10.1007/s11606-019-04976-x CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar2. Balk EM, Chung M, Chen ML, et al. Accuracy of data extraction of non-English language trials with Google Translate. Methods Research Report. (Prepared by the Tufts Evidence-based Practice Center under contract 290-2007-10055 I). Rockville: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; 2012. Google Scholar3. Turner K. Google Translate is getting really, really accurate. Washington Post. 3 October 2016. Accessed at www.washingtonpost.com/news/innovations/wp/2016/10/03/google-translate-is-getting-really-really-accurate/?utm_term=.4eb5991f4cfc on 9 July 2019. Google Scholar4. Jadad AR, Moore RA, Carroll D, et al. Assessing the quality of reports of randomized clinical trials: is blinding necessary? Control Clin Trials. 1996;17:1-12. [PMID: 8721797] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar5. Higgins JP, Altman DG, Gøtzsche PC, et al; Cochrane Bias Methods Group. The Cochrane Collaboration's tool for assessing risk of bias in randomised trials. BMJ. 2011;343:d5928. [PMID: 22008217] doi:10.1136/bmj.d5928 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Wisconsin (J.L.J., A.A., D.K., C.S.)Kurashiki Central Hospital, Okayama, Japan (A.K.)Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Newark, New Jersey (A.C.)Université de Nantes, Nantes, France (J.F.)University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany (A.G.)Hôpital Universitaire de Genéve, Geneva, Switzerland (F.J.)Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, and Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Hubei, China (R.S.)Disclosures: Authors have disclosed no conflicts of interest. Forms can be viewed at www.acponline.org/authors/icmje/ConflictOfInterestForms.do?msNum=M19-0891.Reproducible Research Statement: Study protocol and data set: Available from Dr. Jackson (e-mail, [email protected]edu). Statistical code: Not available.This article was published at Annals.org on 30 July 2019. 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