Dynamic response and damage estimation of infant brain for vibration

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to clarify the mechanical generation mechanism of acute subdual hematoma, which is a severe injury in infants, by performing experiments and finite element analysis. The acute subdural hematoma in infants is caused by accidents such as falling or abuse such as shaking. This paper describes the shaking events. In the experiments, we used a 6-month-old anthropometric dummy and a vibration exciter, which can set the parameters. The dummy was fixed to the exciter at the chest, which it was given the vibration. The head model of the dummy is transparent, and the brain behavior can be visualized. In finite element analysis, we used a model that has been converted to the 6-month-old head through the adult head by the method of free-form deformation (FFD) and scaling. Also, we performed the simulation of shaking events as input acceleration and angular velocity of the head obtained in the experiments. We measured the stretch ratio of the bridging veins, which connect the skull and the brain, then compared this with the ratio to the threshold (1.5). In this study, we examined the effect on the infant head of shaking action, along with the risk. © The Society for Experimental Mechanics, Inc. 2013.