Abstract
Realistic biomechanical models of the human head should accurately reflect the mechanical properties of all neurocranial bones. Previous studies predominantly focused on static testing setups, males, restricted age ranges and scarcely investigated the temporal area. This given study determined the biomechanical properties of 64 human neurocranial samples (age range of 3 weeks to 94 years) using testing velocities of 2.5, 3.0 and 3.5 m/s in a three-point bending setup. Maximum forces were higher with increasing testing velocities (p ≤ 0.031) but bending strengths only revealed insignificant increases (p ≥ 0.052). The maximum force positively correlated with the sample thickness (p ≤ 0.012 at 2.0 m/s and 3.0 m/s) and bending strength negatively correlated with both age (p ≤ 0.041) and sample thickness (p ≤ 0.036). All parameters were independent of sex (p ≥ 0.120) apart from a higher bending strength of females (p = 0.040) for the 3.5 -m/s group. All parameters were independent of the post mortem interval (p ≥ 0.061). This study provides novel insights into the dynamic mechanical properties of distinct neurocranial bones over an age range spanning almost one century. It is concluded that the former are age-, site- and thickness-dependent, whereas sex dependence needs further investigation.
Highlights
Realistic biomechanical models of the human head should accurately reflect the mechanical properties of all neurocranial bones
Biomechanical parameters characterizing the load-deformation behavior of the human neurocranium are crucial for building physical m odels[1,2,3] and high-quality computational s imulations[4,5,6] of the human head to answer complex biomechanical research questions to the best possible extent
Human neurocranium reveals sex-dependent morphological differences that might be reflected in the mechanical properties as it was shown for other human tissues before[26]
Summary
Realistic biomechanical models of the human head should accurately reflect the mechanical properties of all neurocranial bones. Previous studies predominantly focused on static testing setups, males, restricted age ranges and scarcely investigated the temporal area This given study determined the biomechanical properties of 64 human neurocranial samples (age range of 3 weeks to 94 years) using testing velocities of 2.5, 3.0 and 3.5 m/s in a three-point bending setup. Human head models are utilized to simulate various impact scenarios such as falls[7], vehicle accidents[8], gunshots injuries[9] or forensically relevant accident reconstructions in court These scenarios are of a dynamic, especially a non-quasi-static, nature, which requires the biomechanical properties of a viscoelastic material such as b one[10] to be obtained using appropriate experimental setups. The given study aimed to determine the load resistance of different human neurocranial samples when exerted to dynamic strain rates, while simultaneously assessing the influence of age, sex and thickness on the obtained mechanical properties.
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