FUNCTIONAL IMPAIRMENT AND STRUCTURAL CERVICAL INJURIES IN HUMAN SURROGATES

Currently available biomechanical engineering data are insufficient for determining the neck loads required to produce cervical injuries in automotive accidents. The purpose of this study was to initiate a series of experiments for identifying injury mechanisms and developing criteria suitable for representing the spectrum of significant functional and structural neck injuries that could be sustained by car crash occupants. The first four experiments of a pilot, static, neck loading test series were conducted on anesthetized and/or fresh cadaveric, adult, female baboons (Papio hamadryas). A state of muscle paralysis was maintained in the anesthetized test subjects to mimic the flaccid muscle tone present in fresh cadavers. Mid-sagittal, planar, tensile head loading was increased at a rate of 20.5 N every five minutes until definitive structural failure (atlas-occipital subluxation) occurred. Applied loading was aligned differently for each test to provide a spectrum of induced shear neck force versus tensile neck force components. Neurophysiological testing demonstrated that cervical spinal cord function was seriously impaired at 17 to 52 percent of the structural failure load. The potential implications of these findings are discussed, relative to the understanding of injury mechanisms. In addition, a strategy is presented for deriving functional neural tissue impairment thresholds, from fresh human cadaver data, that may apply in real accident victims.

• Corporate Authors:

  Southwest Research Institute

  Department of Bioengineering, 6220 Culebra Road
  San Antonio, TX  United States  78284

  National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Authors:
  • Lenox, J B
  • Anderson, O M
  • White, C D
  • Moore, G T
• Publication Date: 1984-2-8

Media Info

• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 94 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Animals; Cadavers; Crash injury research; Experiments; Injuries; Laboratory animals; Neck; Spinal cord; Traffic crashes
• Uncontrolled Terms: Motor vehicle accidents
• Old TRIS Terms: Cervical cord
• Subject Areas: Highways; Research; Safety and Human Factors; I84: Personal Injuries;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00396290
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
• Report/Paper Numbers: Final Rpt., HS-806 635
• Contract Numbers: DTNH-22-80-C-07165
• Files: HSL, TRIS, USDOT
• Created Date: Aug 31 1985 12:00AM