Blast Scaling Parameters: Transitioning from Lung to Skull Base Metrics

Neurotrauma from blast exposure is one of the single most characteristic injuries of modern warfare. Understanding blast traumatic brain injury is critical for developing new treatment options for warfighters and civilians exposed to improvised explosive devices. Unfortunately, the pre-clinical models that are widely utilized to investigate blast exposure are based on archaic lung based parameters developed in the early 20th century. Improvised explosive devices produce a different type of injury paradigm than the typical mortar explosion. Protective equipment for the chest cavity has also improved over the past 100 years. In order to improve treatments, it is imperative to develop models that are based more on skull-based parameters. In this mini-review, we discuss the important anatomical and biochemical features necessary to develop a skull-based model.