Characterization of pediatric porcine skull properties during impact.

Falls and inflicted impacts are leading causes of severe brain injury in children. We determined mechanical properties of pediatric porcine skull and suture at impact rates (2.16 and 3.67 m/s) to complement previous quasistatic data. As before, elastic modulus (E) and ultimate stress (sult) of cranial bone were significantly higher and ultimate strain (eult) was significantly lower than suture. At high rates, E and sult had no statistically significant rate dependence. Compared to quasistatic conditions, skull and suture were significantly less stiff, with larger eult, indicating impact at higher rates may be associated with larger distortions of the braincase. For the covering abstract see E135170.