Abstract
Skin injury is the most common type of injury, which manifests itself in the form of wounds and cuts. A minor wound repairs itself within a short span of time. However, deep wounds require adequate care and sometime clinical interventions such as surgical suturing for their timely closure and healing. In literature, mechanical properties of skin and other tissues are well known. However, the anisotropic behavior of wounded skin has not been studied yet, specifically with respect to localized overstraining and possibilities of rupture. In the current work, the biomechanics of common skin wound geometries were studied with a biofidelic skin phantom, using uniaxial mechanical testing and Digital Image Correlation (DIC). Global and local mechanical properties were investigated, and possibilities of rupture due to localized overstraining were studied across different wound geometries and locations. Based on the experiments, a finite element (FE) model was developed for a common elliptical skin wound geometry. The fidelity of this FE model was evaluated with simulation of uniaxial tension tests. The induced strain distributions and stress-stretch responses of the FE model correlated very well with the experiments (R2 > 0.95). This model would be useful for prediction of the mechanical response of common wound geometries, especially with respect to their chances of rupture due to localized overstraining. This knowledge would be indispensable for pre-surgical planning, and also in robotic surgeries, for selection of appropriate wound closure techniques, which do not overstrain the skin tissue or initiate tearing.
Highlights
Skin wounds are caused due to rupture of one or more layers of the skin [1]
The test specimens were subjected to uniaxial strains and Digital Image Correlation (DIC) was used to investigate the strain fields developed due to different wound geometries
A novel computational model was developed based on the experiments with the common elliptical transverse wound geometry, exhibiting the most prominent overstraining effect and rupture
Summary
Skin wounds are caused due to rupture of one or more layers of the skin [1]. Figure 1 shows the three layers of the skin, namely the epidermis (outermost layer), dermis (middle layer) and hypodermis (bottom layer) and a dermal skin wound. The mechanics of wound closure has been studied using computational modeling [4]. IItt wwaass ccoonncclluuddeedd ffrroomm tthhee ssttuuddyy tthhaatt tthhee wwoouunndd cclloossuurree ffoorrccee hhaass ssttrroonngg ddeeppeennddeennccee oonn wwoouunndd ggeeoommeettrryy,, wwiitthh eelllliippttiiccaall ggeeoommeettrryy lleeaaddiinngg ttoo lloowweesstt ssuuttuurree ffoorrccee rreeqquuiirreemmeennttss. Actual sutures were placed to close the wounds, and the average stress‐strain responses were compared with the mechanical behavior of wounded specimens without sutures. OLuocnadl cohnanthgeessuarrorouunnddtihnegwsokuinndstsrawineriengnowt as noqt uchanartiafcietderiaznedd.the influence of geometrical parameters of the wound on the surrounding skin strTaoinidnagtew,atshneoret cihsaaraclatecrkizoedf .knowledge on localized straining of skin wounds.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
