Fracture patterns of the developing skull attributable to different impact scenarios

Forensic anthropologists and pathologists frequently rely on fracture pattern analysis to determine the causation of trauma in pediatric abuse cases. However, due to a lack of pediatric skull fracture tolerance data it is often difficult to diagnose whether the injury was inflicted or accidental. The research presented in this thesis utilizes an in situ porcine head model and finite element analysis to assess the degree and pattern of skull fracture in two different impact scenarios: entrapped and free fall. Chapter 2 documents the skull fracture patterns generated due to a high energy blunt impact using a rigid and compliant interface. The porcine specimens in Chapter 2 were entrapped in a bed of air-hardened epoxy in order to prevent translation of the head during impact. In Chapter 3, the porcine model was used to assess the degree and pattern of fracture due to a free falling head impact. These specimens were dropped with an equal level of impact energy as those in Chapter 2 to compare the patterns of fracture. In Chapter 4, the data from both impact scenarios was compared to assess the differences of fracture. A finite element model was constructed to provide theoretical insight of the principal tensile stress directions for better understanding of the fractures generated in each impact scenario. The information presented in this thesis may be helpful diagnosing whether the head was constrained in a forensic case.