Finite element simulation of brain deformation from six degree of freedom acceleration measurements of mild traumatic brain injury

Anxiety, 2014

F Hernandez, L Wu, M Yip, A Hoffman, J Lopez, G Grant, S Kleiven, D Camarillo

Abstract: Human mTBI biomechanics are complex and poorly understood, rendering screening efforts ineffective. Inertial rotation and translation are thought to cause diffuse brain trauma, but human tolerance to acceleration in all rotational and translational directions (six degrees of freedom, 6DOF) has not been measured for a human injury. Using novel instrumented mouthguards that rigidly couple to the upper dentition, we measured head collision biomechanics in full 6DOF, including the first complete measurements of human mTBI. Over 500 collisions among 31 subjects were measured at American football, boxing, and mixed martial arts events. Two subjects sustained a concussion during competitive play: one suffered loss of consciousness (LOC) while the other self-reported more subtle post-concussive symptoms, including headache, impaired concentration, and slowed reaction. Using the KTH finite element (FE) model, we mapped complex spatiotemporal kinematics measured in vivo onto the brain’s anatomy. The LOC injury reported the highest principal strain (50%) among 50 randomly-selected non-injury collisions and the selfreported injury. Six non-injury collisions produced higher strains than the self-reported injury (18%), but in different anatomical regions. Maximum strain in both injuries occurred in the corpus callosum, and no non-injuries reached injury strain levels in this region. The LOC injury also predicted large strains in the brainstem. Our 6DOF measurement system predicted deformation in brain structures consistent with observed neurological deficits. Injury and non-injury collisions were distinguished by the severity and location …

Hernandez et al. (2014) Finite element simulation of brain deformation from six degree of freedom acceleration measurements of mild traumatic brain injury, Anxiety, vol. 2, pp. 33.

Pub Link: http://schmitzmine.eu/nns/program_and_abstractbook/NNS2014/Flipping-Book/HTML/files/assets/common/downloads/page0156.pdf
arXiv: