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Laboratory Reconstructions of Bicycle Helmet Damage: Investigation of Cyclist Head Impacts Using Oblique Impacts and Computed Tomography

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Abstract

Although head injuries are common in cycling, exact conditions associated with cyclist head impacts are difficult to determine. Previous studies have attempted to reverse engineer cyclist head impacts by reconstructing bicycle helmet residual damage, but they have been limited by simplified damage assessment and testing. The present study seeks to enhance knowledge of cyclist head impact conditions by reconstructing helmet damage using advanced impact testing and damage quantification techniques. Damage to 18 helmets from cyclists treated in emergency departments was quantified using computed tomography and reconstructed using oblique impacts. Damage metrics were related to normal and tangential velocities from impact tests as well as peak linear accelerations (PLA) and peak rotational velocities (PRV) using case-specific regression models. Models then allowed original impact conditions and kinematics to be estimated for each case. Helmets were most frequently damaged at the front and sides, often near the rim. Concussion was the most common, non-superficial head injury. Normal velocity and PLA distributions were similar to previous studies, with median values of 3.4 m/s and 102.5 g. Associated tangential velocity and PRV medians were 3.8 m/s and 22.3 rad/s. Results can inform future oblique impact testing conditions, enabling improved helmet evaluation and design.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and the Virginia Tech Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Science (ICTAS) for their funding and support, the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine for CT scanner use, Materialise application engineers for aiding in the software-based analysis, Kamil Narayan for managing data collection at Oregon Health and Science University, and all research assistants who enrolled and interviewed patients for the study.

Conflict of interest

The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biomedical Engineering and Mechanics, Virginia Tech, 343 Kelly Hall, 325 Stanger Street, Blacksburg, VA, 24061, USA

    Megan L. Bland, Craig McNally & Steven Rowson

  2. Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, 988 Dairy Road, Ruckersville, VA, 22968, USA

    Jessica B. Cicchino, David S. Zuby & Becky C. Mueller

  3. George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health, 950 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC, 20052, USA

    Melissa L. McCarthy

  4. Department of Emergency Medicine, Center for Policy and Research in Emergency Medicine, Oregon Health & Science University, 3181 SW Jackson Park Road, CR-114, Portland, OR, 97239, USA

    Craig D. Newgard & Brittany N. Arnold

  5. Department of Emergency Medicine, George Washington University Medical Center, 2120 L Street NW, Suite 450, Washington, DC, 20037, USA

    Paige E. Kulie

Authors
  1. Megan L. Bland
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  2. Craig McNally
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  3. Jessica B. Cicchino
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  4. David S. Zuby
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  5. Becky C. Mueller
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  6. Melissa L. McCarthy
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  10. Steven Rowson
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Correspondence to Megan L. Bland.

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Associate Editor Joel D Stitzel oversaw the review of this article.

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Appendix

Appendix

Table A1 Testing and model results for each case. Standard errors (SE) are provided for normal and tangential velocities, PLA, and PRV, while the propagated errors from the normal and tangential velocity SE are given for resultant velocity and impact angle.
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Bland, M.L., McNally, C., Cicchino, J.B. et al. Laboratory Reconstructions of Bicycle Helmet Damage: Investigation of Cyclist Head Impacts Using Oblique Impacts and Computed Tomography. Ann Biomed Eng 48, 2783–2795 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10439-020-02620-y

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