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Isa MI, Fenton TW, Goots AC, Watson EO, Vaughan PE, Wei F. Effects of input energy and impactor shape on cranial fracture patterns. Forensic Sci Int 2023; 352:111859. [PMID: 37857182 DOI: 10.1016/j.forsciint.2023.111859] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2023] [Revised: 08/18/2023] [Accepted: 10/11/2023] [Indexed: 10/21/2023]
Abstract
This study documents relationships between input energy, impactor shape, and the formation of fractures in human crania. Parietal impact experiments (n = 12) were performed at 67% higher input energy compared to previously reported experiments. Fracture origins, characteristics, and locations were compared at two input energy levels with three impactor shapes (focal "hammer", flat "brick", and curved "bat"). Impacts with all three impactors at both energy levels produced fractures originating at and remote to the impact site, indicating both mechanisms are typical in temporoparietal blunt force impacts. Higher energy impacts generally produced more impact site fractures, depression, and comminution than lower energy impacts. A small, focal impactor produced cone cracks, depression, and fractures localized near the impact site. A broad, curved impactor produced circumferential fractures and linear fractures extending into adjacent bones. A broad, flat impactor produced fracture patterns ranging from linear fractures to large depressed and comminuted defects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mariyam I Isa
- Department of Anthropology, Michigan State University, 655 Auditorium Dr., East Lansing, 48824 MI, United States.
| | - Todd W Fenton
- Department of Anthropology, Michigan State University, 655 Auditorium Dr., East Lansing, 48824 MI, United States
| | - Alexis C Goots
- Department of Anthropology, Michigan State University, 655 Auditorium Dr., East Lansing, 48824 MI, United States
| | - Elena O Watson
- Department of Anthropology, Michigan State University, 655 Auditorium Dr., East Lansing, 48824 MI, United States
| | - Patrick E Vaughan
- Orthopaedic Biomechanics Laboratories, Michigan State University, 965 Fee Rd., East Lansing 48824, MI, United States
| | - Feng Wei
- Orthopaedic Biomechanics Laboratories, Michigan State University, 965 Fee Rd., East Lansing 48824, MI, United States
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2
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Knüsel CJ, Thibeault A, Villotte S. A cranial injury from the earliest Gravettian at the Cro-Magnon rock shelter (Vézère Valley, Dordogne, southwest France). J Hum Evol 2023; 177:103329. [PMID: 36870149 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2023.103329] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2022] [Revised: 01/24/2023] [Accepted: 01/24/2023] [Indexed: 03/06/2023]
Abstract
Discovered over 150 years ago, the early Upper Paleolithic human remains from the Cro-Magnon rock shelter have an iconic status, but because of skeletal commingling after discovery, their bio-profiles remain incomplete and contentious. The defect on the frontal bone of the cranium known as Cro-Magnon 2 has been interpreted as both an antemortem injury and a postmortem (i.e., taphonomic) artifact previously. This contribution considers the cranium in order to clarify the status of the defect on the frontal bone and to situate these remains among others of Pleistocene date with similar types of lesions. The diagnostic criteria used to assess the cranium are drawn from recent publications of actualistic experimental studies of cranial trauma and from those associated with cranial trauma due to violence in forensic anthropological and bioarchaeological contexts. The appearance of the defect and comparison with more recent documented cases from the preantibiotic era suggest that the defect is a result of antemortem trauma with survival for a short period. The location of the lesion on the cranium provides growing evidence for interpersonal aggression in these early modern human groups, and the place of burial also provides insight into related mortuary behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Adrien Thibeault
- UMR 5199 PACEA, Université de Bordeaux, CNRS, 33600 Pessac, France
| | - Sébastien Villotte
- UMR7206 Éco-Anthropologie, CNRS, MNHN, Université Paris Cité, 75116 Paris, France; Operational Directory Earth and History of Life, Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, 1000 Brussels, Belgium; Unité de Recherches Art, Archéologie Patrimoine, Université de Liège, B-4000 Liège, Belgium
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3
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Isaac CV, Cornelison JB, Devota CJ, Shattuck BL, Castellani RJ. An unusual blunt force trauma pattern and mechanism to the cranial vault: Investigation of an atypical infant homicide. J Forensic Sci 2023; 68:315-326. [PMID: 36331044 PMCID: PMC10098721 DOI: 10.1111/1556-4029.15168] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2022] [Revised: 10/04/2022] [Accepted: 10/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
This case report presents an unusual fracture pattern in the cranium of a four-month-old infant indicative of child abuse. Upon postmortem examination, the infant presented with numerous bilateral linear cranial fractures running perpendicular to the sagittal suture with depressed and curvilinear fractures apparent on the supra-auricular surfaces of the cranium. Histological evidence indicates multiple traumatic events to the cranium. In addition, the stair-step pattern of a parietal fracture may represent multiple contiguous fractures from repeated loading of the head at different times with variation of the focal points of compressive force. Additionally, the left humerus, left radius, and left ulna have healing metaphyseal fractures, and the left ulna also has an antemortem diaphyseal fracture which resulted in the distal metaphysis being rotated 45 degrees medially. Integration of autopsy, anthropological, and neuropathological reports for this case suggest multiple inflicted injury episodes with a repeated atypical mechanism(s) to the cranial vault of the infant. During investigative interviews, the caretaker admitted to squeezing the infant's head and neck on multiple occasions to quiet the child. This reported abusive mechanism is consistent with the pattern of symmetric cranial fractures and soft tissue injuries indicating asphyxiation. This case report provides forensic investigators with a potential trauma mechanism to explore in cases when a similar pattern of cranial trauma is observed and highlights the need for greater research on fracture propagation and fracture healing in the infant cranium.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carolyn V Isaac
- Department of Anthropology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA
| | - Jered B Cornelison
- Department of Pathology, Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine, Kalamazoo, Michigan, USA
| | - Clara J Devota
- Department of Anthropology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA
| | | | - Rudolph J Castellani
- Department of Pathology, Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA
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A Review of the Compressive Stiffness of the Human Head. Ann Biomed Eng 2022; 50:1750-1761. [PMID: 36371475 PMCID: PMC9794540 DOI: 10.1007/s10439-022-03099-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2022] [Accepted: 10/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
Synthetic surrogate head models are used in biomechanical studies to investigate skull, brain, and cervical spine injury. To ensure appropriate biofidelity of these head models, the stiffness is often tuned so that the surrogate's response approximates the cadaveric response corridor. Impact parameters such as energy, and loading direction and region, can influence injury prediction measures, such as impact force and head acceleration. An improved understanding of how impact parameters affect the head's structural response is required for designing better surrogate head models. This study comprises a synthesis and review of all existing ex vivo head stiffness data, and the primary factors that influence the force-deformation response are discussed. Eighteen studies from 1972 to 2019 were identified. Head stiffness statistically varied with age (pediatric vs. adult), loading region, and rate. The contact area of the impactor likely affects stiffness, whereas the impactor mass likely does not. The head's response to frontal impacts was widely reported, but few studies have evaluated the response to other impact locations and directions. The findings from this review indicate that further work is required to assess the effect of head constraints, loading region, and impactor geometry, across a range of relevant scenarios.
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Cranial blunt force trauma in relation to the victim’s position: An experimental study using polyurethane bone spheres. Forensic Sci Int 2019; 301:350-357. [DOI: 10.1016/j.forsciint.2019.05.051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2018] [Revised: 03/22/2019] [Accepted: 05/22/2019] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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Isa MI, Fenton TW, Goots AC, Watson EO, Vaughan PE, Wei F. Experimental investigation of cranial fracture initiation in blunt human head impacts. Forensic Sci Int 2019; 300:51-62. [DOI: 10.1016/j.forsciint.2019.04.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2018] [Revised: 03/31/2019] [Accepted: 04/03/2019] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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Siegenthaler L, Strehl M, Vaghi A, Zysset P, Kneubuehl BP, Frenz M. Threshold of the skull injury for blunt force impacts under free and constraint boundary conditions. Int J Legal Med 2019; 134:553-563. [DOI: 10.1007/s00414-019-02023-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2018] [Accepted: 02/06/2019] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
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9
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Stojanowski CM, Seidel AC, Fulginiti LC, Johnson KM, Buikstra JE. Contesting the massacre at Nataruk. Nature 2016; 539:E8-E10. [DOI: 10.1038/nature19778] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2016] [Accepted: 08/09/2016] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Jiang B, Zhu F, Cao L, Presley BR, Shen M, Yang KH. Computational Study of Fracture Characteristics in Infant Skulls Using a Simplified Finite Element Model. J Forensic Sci 2016; 62:39-49. [DOI: 10.1111/1556-4029.13241] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2015] [Revised: 01/10/2016] [Accepted: 03/19/2016] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Binhui Jiang
- The State Key Laboratory of Advanced Design and Manufacturing for Vehicle Body; Hunan University; Hunan 410082 China
- Bioengineering Center; Wayne State University; MI 48201 China
| | - Feng Zhu
- The State Key Laboratory of Advanced Design and Manufacturing for Vehicle Body; Hunan University; Hunan 410082 China
- Bioengineering Center; Wayne State University; MI 48201 China
| | - Libo Cao
- The State Key Laboratory of Advanced Design and Manufacturing for Vehicle Body; Hunan University; Hunan 410082 China
| | | | - Ming Shen
- Bioengineering Center; Wayne State University; MI 48201 China
| | - King H. Yang
- Bioengineering Center; Wayne State University; MI 48201 China
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Love JC, Wiersema JM. Skeletal Trauma: An Anthropological Review. Acad Forensic Pathol 2016; 6:463-477. [PMID: 31239921 PMCID: PMC6474561 DOI: 10.23907/2016.047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Revised: 06/24/2016] [Accepted: 08/03/2016] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
As anthropologists take on a larger role in medical examiner's offices, the incorporation of bone trauma analysis into the autopsy increases. The purpose of this invited review is to summarize recent anthropological literature that exemplifies the value of forensic anthropology in medicolegal death investigation, concentrating in the area of skeletal trauma analysis. Forensic anthropologists have a strong understanding of bone's response to trauma, gained through research and case studies. With this body of knowledge they are able to examine and interpret skeletal injury resulting from blunt, sharp, firearm, and thermal trauma. For example, toolmark class characteristics are recognized through sharp force injury examination, and fracture pattern analysis provides details of the impacting surface area. Interpretation of skeletal trauma allows for reconstruction of events surrounding death, and may inform the manner of death classification.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer C. Love
- District of Columbia Office of the Chief Medical Examiner -
Anthropology
| | - Jason M. Wiersema
- Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences - Forensic
Anthropology Division
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12
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Marinho L, Cardoso HF. Comparing Known and Reconstructed Circumstances of Death Involving a Blunt Force Trauma Mechanism through a Retrospective Analysis of 21 Skeletonized Individuals. J Forensic Sci 2016; 61:1416-1430. [DOI: 10.1111/1556-4029.13128] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2015] [Revised: 12/09/2015] [Accepted: 01/02/2016] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Luísa Marinho
- Department of Archaeology and Centre for Forensic Research; Simon Fraser University; Burnaby B.C. V5A 1S6 Canada
| | - Hugo F.V. Cardoso
- Department of Archaeology and Centre for Forensic Research; Simon Fraser University; Burnaby B.C. V5A 1S6 Canada
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Blau S. How traumatic: a review of the role of the forensic anthropologist in the examination and interpretation of skeletal trauma. AUST J FORENSIC SCI 2016. [DOI: 10.1080/00450618.2016.1153715] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Soren Blau
- Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine / Department of Forensic Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia
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Deland TS, Niespodziewanski E, Fenton TW, Haut RC. The Role of Interface on the Impact Characteristics and Cranial Fracture Patterns Using the Immature Porcine Head Model. J Forensic Sci 2015; 61 Suppl 1:S53-9. [DOI: 10.1111/1556-4029.12939] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2014] [Revised: 01/27/2015] [Accepted: 02/12/2015] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Trevor S. Deland
- Orthopaedic Biomechanics Laboratories; Michigan State University; East Lansing MI
| | | | - Todd W. Fenton
- Department of Anthropology; Michigan State University; East Lansing MI
| | - Roger C. Haut
- Orthopaedic Biomechanics Laboratories; Michigan State University; East Lansing MI
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How hard is hard enough? An investigation of the force associated with lateral blunt force trauma to the porcine cranium. Leg Med (Tokyo) 2015; 17:1-8. [DOI: 10.1016/j.legalmed.2014.07.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2014] [Revised: 07/21/2014] [Accepted: 07/28/2014] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
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16
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Messina AD, Carotenuto G, Miccichè R, Sìneo L. Fatal cranial injury in an individual from Messina (Sicily) during the times of the Roman Empire. J Forensic Leg Med 2013; 20:1018-23. [PMID: 24237811 DOI: 10.1016/j.jflm.2013.09.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2013] [Revised: 07/25/2013] [Accepted: 09/25/2013] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Forensic and archaeological examinations of human skeletons can provide us with evidence of violence. In this paper, we present the patterns of two cranial lesions found on an adult male (T173) buried in a grave in the necropolis 'Isolato 96', Messina, Sicily, dating back to the Roman Empire (1st century BC - 1st century AD). The skull reveals two perimortem traumatic lesions, one produced by a sharp object on the right parietal bone and the other one on the left parietal bone, presumably the result of a fall. The interpretation of fracture patterns found in this cranium are an illustration of how forensic approaches can be applied with great benefit to archaeological specimens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea Dario Messina
- Dipartimento di "Scienze e Tecnologie biologiche, chimiche e farmaceutiche" LabHomo, Laboratori di Antropologia, Universita' di Palermo (I), Via Archirafi, 18, 90123, Italy.
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17
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Muccino E, Porta D, Magli F, Cigada A, Sala R, Gibelli D, Cattaneo C. Applicability of cranial models in urethane resin and foam as a substitute for bone: are synthetic materials reliable? J Forensic Sci 2013; 58:1257-1263. [PMID: 23865474 DOI: 10.1111/1556-4029.12164] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2012] [Revised: 06/28/2012] [Accepted: 06/30/2012] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
As literature is poor in functional synthetic cranial models, in this study, synthetic handmade models of cranial vaults were produced in two different materials (a urethane resin and a self-hardening foam), from multiple bone specimens (eight original cranial vaults: four human and four swine), in order to test their resemblance to bone structure in behavior, during fracture formation. All the vaults were mechanically tested with a 2-kg impact weight and filmed with a high-speed camera. Fracture patterns were homogeneous in all swine vaults and heterogeneous in human vaults, with resin fractures more similar to bone fractures. Mean fracture latency time extrapolated by videos were of 0.75 msec (bone), 1.5 msec (resin), 5.12 msec (foam) for human vaults and of 0.625 msec (bone), 1.87 msec (resin), 3.75 msec (foam) for swine vaults. These data showed that resin models are more similar to bone than foam reproductions, but that synthetic material may behave quite differently from bone as concerns fracture latency times.
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Affiliation(s)
- Enrico Muccino
- LABANOF, Laboratorio di Antropologia e Odontologia Forense, Sezione di Medicina Legale, Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche per la Salute-Sezione di Medicina Legale, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via Luigi Mangiagalli 37, 20133, Milano, Italy
| | - Davide Porta
- LABANOF, Laboratorio di Antropologia e Odontologia Forense, Sezione di Medicina Legale, Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche per la Salute-Sezione di Medicina Legale, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via Luigi Mangiagalli 37, 20133, Milano, Italy
| | - Francesca Magli
- LABANOF, Laboratorio di Antropologia e Odontologia Forense, Sezione di Medicina Legale, Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche per la Salute-Sezione di Medicina Legale, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via Luigi Mangiagalli 37, 20133, Milano, Italy
| | - Alfredo Cigada
- Sezione di Misure e Tecniche Sperimentali, Dipartimento di Meccanica, Politecnico di Milano, Via La Masa 1, 20156, Milano, Italy
| | - Remo Sala
- Sezione di Misure e Tecniche Sperimentali, Dipartimento di Meccanica, Politecnico di Milano, Via La Masa 1, 20156, Milano, Italy
| | - Daniele Gibelli
- LABANOF, Laboratorio di Antropologia e Odontologia Forense, Sezione di Medicina Legale, Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche per la Salute-Sezione di Medicina Legale, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via Luigi Mangiagalli 37, 20133, Milano, Italy
| | - Cristina Cattaneo
- LABANOF, Laboratorio di Antropologia e Odontologia Forense, Sezione di Medicina Legale, Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche per la Salute-Sezione di Medicina Legale, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via Luigi Mangiagalli 37, 20133, Milano, Italy
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