Development of detailed finite element models for in silico analyses of brain impact dynamics

• Published in: Computer methods and programs in biomedicine 2022-12, Vol.227, p.107225, Article 107225
• Main Authors: Pavan, Piero G., Nasim, Mohammed, Brasco, Veronica, Spadoni, Silvia, Paoloni, Francesco, d'Avella, Domenico, Khosroshahi, Siamak Farajzadeh, de Cesare, Niccolò, Gupta, Karan, Galvanetto, Ugo
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Brain tissue mechanics; Finite Element Analysis; Head models; Impact
• ISSN: 0169-2607; 1872-7565
• DOI: 10.1016/j.cmpb.2022.107225

•The FE models of the heads are characterized by a high biofidelity.•The validation of FE models is based on three independent sets of experimental data.•The biofidelity of the models is confirmed by high CORA (CORelation and analysis) scores.•The models developed will make possible the design of protective systems. In the last few decades, several studies have been performed to investigate traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) and to understand the biomechanical response of brain tissues, by using experimental and computational approaches. As part of computational approaches, human head finite element (FE) models show to be important tools in the analysis of TBIs, making it possible to estimate local mechanical effects on brain tissue for different accident scenarios. The present study aims to contribute to the computational approach by means of the development of three advanced FE head models for accurately describing the head tissue dynamics, the first step to predict TBIs. We have developed three detailed FE models of human heads from magnetic resonance images of three volunteers: an adult female (32 yrs), an adult male (35 yrs), and a young male (16 yrs). These models have been validated against experimental data of post mortem human subjects (PMHS) tests available in the literature. Brain tissue displacements relative to the skull, hydrostatic intracranial pressure, and head acceleration have been used as the parameters to compare the model response with the experimental response for validation. The software CORAplus (CORrelation and Analysis) has been adopted to evaluate the bio-fidelity level of FE models. Numerical results from the three models agree with experimental data. FE models presented in this study show a good bio-fidelity for hydrostatic pressure (CORA score of 0.776) and a fair bio-fidelity brain tissue displacements relative to the skull (CORA score of 0.443 and 0.535). The comparison among numerical simulations carried out with the three models shows negligible differences in the mechanical state of brain tissue due to the different morphometry of the heads, when the same acceleration history is considered. The three FE models, thanks to their accurate description of anatomical morphology and to their bio-fidelity, can be useful tools to investigate brain mechanics due to different impact scenarios. Therefore, they can be used for different purposes, such as the investigation of the correlation between head acceleration and tissue damage, o