Development of a Comprehensive Injury Criterion for Moderate and Mild Traumatic Brain Injuries

Abstract

Traumatic brain injuries are commonly caused by blows that produce sudden accelerations of the head. A methodology to define a new global brain injury criterion and thresholds that account for time-dependent and combined translational-rotational kinematics of the head is described in this paper. In total 43 head impact tests with monkeys conducted in the past were reproduced, using a finite element model of the monkey head and neck. The study found that the new criterion predicted concussions and brain tissue strains more precisely than past criteria. A scheme that scales the proposed injury threshold to be applicable for humans is proposed. The new criterion and threshold may then be used in the design of superior protective systems.