Comparative study of potential whiplash injuries for different occupant seated positions during rear end accidents

摘要

Purpose: Whiplash injuries to the cervical spine represent a considerable economic burden on society with medical conditions, in some cases persisting for more than a year. Numerous studies of whiplash injuries have been made for occupant normal seated position, leaving the analysis of neck injuries for out-of-normal positions not well documented. For that purpose, a detailed human cervical spine finite element model was developed. Methods: The analysis was made for four most common occupant seated positions, such as: Normal Position with the torso against the seat back and the head looking straight ahead, Torso Lean forward position with the torso away from the seat back for approximately 10 degrees, Head Flexed position with the head flexed forward approximately 20 degrees from the normal position and Head-Flexed with Torso Lean forward position with the head flexed forward approximately 20 degrees and torso 10 degrees from the normal position. Results: The comparative study included the analysis of capsular ligament deformation and the level of S-curvature of the cervical spine. The model developed predicted that Head Flexed seated position and Head-Flexed with Torso Lean forward seated position are most threatening for upper and lower cervical spine capsular ligament, respectively. As for the level of S-curvature, the model predicted that Head-Flexed with Torso Lean forward seated position would be most prone to neck injuries associated with it. Conclusions: This study demonstrated that the occupant seated position has a significant influence on potential whiplash injuries.