MECHANICS OF DORSAL-LUMBAR SPINE INJURY: A PREMLIMINARY REPORT

Thousands of people suffer spinal injuries each year. Many of the fracture disclocations in the dorsal-lumbar spine result in paraplegia. Recent investigations have identified the lap seat belt as instrumental in tension-type fracture dislocations in the dorsal-lumbar spine. This paper describes initial effort to study whole body dynamics in simulated automobile accidents, and measure the strength of intervertebral joint components under tension. Results indicate that the position of the lap belt effects the injury pattern. Two spines were tested, and the strength and stiffness of the T12-L1 and L3-L4 posterior elements was 127 to 226 lbs. and 663 to 733 lbs./in. respectively.

• Corporate Authors:

  American Association for Automotive Medicine

  801 Green Bay Road
  Lake Bluff, IL  United States  60044
• Authors:
  • Nagel, D A
  • Perkash, I
  • Piziali, R T
  • Hayes, W C
• Conference:
  • 19th Annual Conference of the American Association for Automotive Medicine
  • Date: 1975-11-0 to 1975-11-0
• Publication Date: 1975

Media Info

• Features: Photos; References; Tables;
• Pagination: p. 124-135

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Crash injury research; Crash tests; Injuries; Manual safety belts; Spinal column
• Subject Areas: Highways; Research; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00130754
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Highway Safety Research Institute
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Apr 21 1976 12:00AM