Journal of neurotrauma
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A three-dimensional (3D) finite element model (FEM) that simulates the Impactor weight-drop experimental model of traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI) was developed. The model consists of the rat spinal cord, with distinct element sets for the gray and white matter, the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), the dura mater, a rigid rat spinal column, and a rigid impactor. Loading conditions were taken from the average impact velocities determined from previous parallel weight-drop experiments employing a 2.5-mm-diameter, 10-g rod dropped from either 12.5 or 25 mm. ⋯ The off-center impact had little effect on the rod trajectory, but caused marked shifts in the location of stress and strain contours. Different combinations of parameter values could reproduce the impactor trajectory, which suggests that another experimental measure of the tissue response is required for validation. The FEM can be a valuable tool for understanding the injury biomechanics associated with experimental SCI to identify areas for improvement in animal models and future research to identify thresholds for injury.