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A Method for Evaluating Brain Deformation Under Sagittal Blunt Impacts Using a Half-Skull Human-Scale Surrogate
Michael Hanna1, Abdus Ali1, Michael Klienberger2
1Department of Biomedical Engineering, Center for Injury Biomechanics, Materials and Medicine, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, NJ 07102.
Journal of Biomechanical Engineering
|December 23, 2022
Summary
Crown impacts cause greater brain strain than frontal impacts, revealing key biomechanical differences in traumatic brain injury (TBI) research. This study developed a novel head model to measure brain deformation under dynamic loading.
Area of Science:
- Biomechanics
- Neuroscience
- Injury Mechanics
Background:
- Traumatic brain injury (TBI) results from dynamic head loading.
- Understanding brain deformation is crucial for TBI research.
- Existing models lack adaptability for measuring brain motion.
Purpose of the Study:
- Develop a reusable experimental TBI model.
- Measure brain deformation and strain rates under varying dynamic loading parameters.
- Investigate spatial and temporal brain deformation patterns.
Main Methods:
- Constructed physical head models (skull, brain, neck).
- Applied crown and frontal impacts at varying speeds using a drop tower.
- Recorded impacts with high-speed cameras and tracked marker motion to calculate strain.
Main Results:
- Higher impact velocities correlated with increased strain.
- Crown impacts produced higher magnitude, longer duration strains than frontal impacts.
- Crown impacts at 2.23 m/s resulted in 53% of the brain experiencing shear strains >0.15, versus 32% for frontal impacts.
Conclusions:
- Significant differences exist in spatial and temporal brain strain responses between crown and frontal impacts.
- Crown impacts induce greater strain magnitudes than frontal impacts at equivalent speeds.
- This model offers unique insights into TBI biomechanics and can explore anatomical, material, and loading effects on brain deformation.
