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As with the Wayne State and University of Pennsylvania components, this project is also evaluating, enhancing, and improving the predictive capabilities of SIMon with the ultimate goal of replacing existing head injury criterion (HIC) as the regulatory standard for motor vehicle safety.
The Darvish-Crandall Team is pursuing three specific objectives in support of the overall goal:
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Data collected from the characterization of the kinematics of the impact acceleration test using rat brains is being used as the input to the rat brain Finite Element Model being developed by the Yang-King Team at Wayne State University. Previous histological studies have shown that axonal damage to the brain stem occurs as a consequence of Impact Acceleration Tests. However, previous data are for a specific point in the brain stem. More information is needed on the spatial distribution of injury which could be used to determine the effect of injury on brain material properties, and to validate a finite element model of brain injury. The purpose of this objective is to develop the topography of axonal damage in the brain stem. The last objective is to enhance knowledge of brain material properties, particularly to determine what happens to the properties of brain tissue pre- and post-injury. In other words, how injury changes brain tissue properties. Currently elastic or viscoelastic models with constant coefficients are being used in brain injury numerical models. These cannot predict any changes to the properties as a result of trauma.
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