Biomechanical characterization of cadaveric thigh skin for development of biofidelic simulants

Simulants that accurately replicate the mechanical properties of human skin are essential for biomechanical testing, especially for skin prosthetics and grafting. Although there has been a plethora of research related to the testing of skin samples of several locations, particularly the thigh region remains yet to be extensively explored. Previous studies involving thigh skin lack the testing at varying strain rates which could be helpful to develop simulants and improve high-expansion skin grafts.

This study focused on developing biofieldic simulants that mimic the realistic mechanical behavior of human skin. Uniaxial tensile tests at various strain rates were conducted on cadaver skin samples. Similar tests were also performed on skin simulants made from a two-part elastomer-based polymer with varying shore hardness. The non-linear responses of these simulants were analyzed using Mooney-Rivlin, Neo-Hookean, and Yeoh hyperelastic models.

The study found that cadaveric skin exhibited mechanical behavior consistent with existing literature. Simulants of different shore hardness precisely mimic the mechanical behavior of cadaveric skin at various strain rates within a certain strain limit. All curve fittings showed a strong correlation coefficient R-square greater than 0.980.

The mechanical properties of the polymer-based material make them ideal for developing simulants that can be modeled and tuned to closely match real thigh skin. Such highly characterized biofidelic skin simulants could provide novel insights for surgical training, trauma research, mechanical repeatability, and the development of various medical models for skin conditions.