Meeting Banner
Abstract #4043

Correlation of in Vivo DWI Injury Patterns with Finite Element Analysis of Mouse Spinal Cord Injury

Tsang-Wei Tu1,2, Philip V. Bayly1, Sheng-Kwei Song2

1Mechanical, Aerospace and Structural Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis, Saint Louis, MO, United States; 2Radiology, Washington University in St. Louis, Saint Louis, MO, United States


Knowledge of the biomechanical properties of the spinal cord is crucial to understanding the mechanisms and damage thresholds of spinal-cord-injury (SCI). Numerical analysis, such as Finite Element Analysis (FEA), relies on accurate knowledge of the in vivo material properties to model the stress and strain fields in the spinal cord during rapid impact. In the present study, we compare the extent of SCI, evaluated using in vivo DWI, to the predictions of FEA modeling, using published values of mechanical parameters obtained in vitro. Our results support the hypothesis that that SCI injury pattern correlated with stress-strain fields predicted by FEA.