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The influence of strain rate on the angle of spiral fracture in paediatirc long bone [Abstract]

Qureshi, Asma, Theobald, Peter ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3227-7130, Paul, K and Jones, M. D. 2010. The influence of strain rate on the angle of spiral fracture in paediatirc long bone [Abstract]. European Journal of Trauma and Emergency Surgery 36 (S1) , p. 141.

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Abstract

Introduction: Spiral fractures are commonly presented in the paediatric population, yet distinguishing between inflicted and non-inflicted trauma is challenging. Despite the clinical and forensic importance of ascertaining the approximate loading mechanism required to generate certain fractures patterns, there is a lack of biomechanical literature drawing relationships between the force of trauma and the resulting bone injury in children. Aim - To investigate long bone fracture patterns following the application of a range of rotational loading. Material and Methods: Twenty four bovine tibias were harvested from 7 day old calves and divided into eight groups. The soft tissues were removed leaving the periosteum intact. The bones were aligned along their long-axis and immovably fixed in potted holdings. Each group of bones was then subjected to torsion at a particular strain rate (0.5, 1, 15, 30, 45, 60, 75 and 90o/s) until failure. The angle of fracture (to the long axis) was then measured and the periosteum disruption qualified, in addition to calculation of the torsional stiffness. Results: All 24 specimens failed in spiral fracture. It was observed that the spiral fracture angle (to the long axis) was dependant on the strain rate, ranging from 46.3� at the slower strain rates (1o/s) to 31.3o at the fastest strain rate (90o/s). Spiral fracture was consistently centered on the narrowest waist diameter, with comminution and subsequent periosteal disruption in fractures at the highest strain rate. An increase in bone torsional stiffness was also noted up to 45o/s. Conclusion: This preliminary study suggests that the angle of paediatric long bone spiral fracture may correlate with the causal torsional strain rate. This result has significant clinical and forensic significance, potentially allowing comparison of parent/caretaker accounts with the apparent cause of injury.

Item Type: Article
Date Type: Publication
Status: Published
Schools: Engineering
Additional Information: Paper presented at the 11th Congress of the European Society of Trauma and Emergency Surgery, Brussels, May 15-18, 2010
Publisher: Springer Verlag
ISSN: 1863-9933
Related URLs:
Last Modified: 20 Oct 2022 07:41
URI: https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/26067

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