Dynamic characteristics of impact-induced brain strain in the corpus callosum

Efficient Generation of Pretraining Samples for Developing a Deep Learning Brain Injury Model via Transfer Learning

The large amount of training samples required to develop a deep learning brain injury model demands enormous computational resources. Here, we study how a transformer neural network (TNN) of high accuracy can be used to efficiently generate pretraining samples for a convolutional neural network (CNN) brain injury model to reduce computational cost. The samples use synthetic impacts emulating real-world events or augmented impacts generated from limited measured impacts. First, we verify that the TNN remains highly accurate for the two impact types (N = 100 each;R 2 of 0.948-0.967 with root mean squared error, RMSE, ~ 0.01, for voxelized peak strains). The TNN-estimated samples (1000-5000 for each data type) are then used to pretrain a CNN, which is further finetuned using directly simulated training samples (250-5000). An independent measured impact dataset considered of complete capture of impact event is used to assess estimation accuracy (N = 191). We find that pretraining can significantly improve CNN accuracy via transfer learning compared to a baseline CNN without pretraining. It is most effective when the finetuning dataset is relatively small (e.g., 2000-4000 pretraining synthetic or augmented samples improves success rate from 0.72 to 0.81 with 500 finetuning samples). When finetuning samples reach 3000 or more, no obvious improvement occurs from pretraining. These results support using the TNN to rapidly generate pretraining samples to facilitate a more efficient training strategy for future deep learning brain models, by limiting the number of costly direct simulations from an alternative baseline model. This study could contribute to a wider adoption of deep learning brain injury models for large-scale predictive modeling and ultimately, enhancing safety protocols and protective equipment.

Head Impact Kinematics and Brain Tissue Strains in High School Lacrosse

Male lacrosse and female lacrosse have differences in history, rules, and equipment. There is current debate regarding the need for enhanced protective headwear in female lacrosse like that worn by male lacrosse players. To inform this discussion, 17 high school lacrosse players (6 female and 11 male) wore the Stanford Instrumented Mouthguard during 26 competitive games over the 2021 season. Time-windowing and video review were used to remove false-positive recordings and verify head acceleration events (HAEs). The HAE rate in high school female lacrosse (0.21 per athlete exposure and 0.24 per player hour) was approximately 35% lower than the HAE rate in high school male lacrosse (0.33 per athlete exposure and 0.36 per player hour). Previously collected kinematics data from the 2019 high school male and female lacrosse season were combined with the newly collected 2021 kinematics data, which were used to drive a finite element head model and simulate 42 HAEs. Peak linear acceleration (PLA), peak angular velocity (PAV), and 95th percentile maximum principal strain (MPS95) of brain tissue were compared between HAEs in high school female and male lacrosse. Median values for peak kinematics and MPS95 of HAEs in high school female lacrosse (PLA, 22.3 g; PAV, 10.4 rad/s; MPS95, 0.05) were lower than for high school male lacrosse (PLA, 24.2 g; PAV, 15.4 rad/s; MPS95, 0.07), but the differences were not statistically significant. Quantifying a lower HAE rate in high school female lacrosse compared to high school male lacrosse, but similar HAE magnitudes, provides insight into the debate regarding helmets in female lacrosse. However, due to the small sample size, additional video-verified data from instrumented mouthguards are required.

The White Matter Fiber Tract Deforms Most in the Perpendicular Direction During In Vivo Volunteer Impacts

White matter (WM) tract-related strains are increasingly used to quantify brain mechanical responses, but their dynamics in live human brains during in vivo impact conditions remain largely unknown. Existing research primarily looked into the normal strain along the WM fiber tracts (i.e., tract-oriented normal strain), but it is rarely the case that the fiber tract only endures tract-oriented normal strain during impacts. In this study, we aim to extend the in vivo measurement of WM fiber deformation by quantifying the normal strain perpendicular to the fiber tract (i.e., tract-perpendicular normal strain) and the shear strain along and perpendicular to the fiber tract (i.e., tract-oriented shear strain and tract-perpendicular shear strain, respectively). To achieve this, we combine the three-dimensional strain tensor from the tagged magnetic resonance imaging with the diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) from an open-access dataset, including 44 volunteer impacts under two head loading modes, i.e., neck rotations (N = 30) and neck extensions (N = 14). The strain tensor is rotated to the coordinate system with one axis aligned with DTI-revealed fiber orientation, and then four tract-related strain measures are calculated. The results show that tract-perpendicular normal strain peaks are the largest among the four strain types (p < 0.05, Friedman's test). The distribution of tract-related strains is affected by the head loading mode, of which laterally symmetric patterns with respect to the midsagittal plane are noted under neck extensions, but not under neck rotations. Our study presents a comprehensive in vivo strain quantification toward a multifaceted understanding of WM dynamics. We find that the WM fiber tract deforms most in the perpendicular direction, illuminating new fundamentals of brain mechanics. The reported strain images can be used to evaluate the fidelity of computational head models, especially those intended to predict fiber deformation under noninjurious conditions.

A computational pipeline towards large-scale and multiscale modeling of traumatic axonal injury

Contemporary biomechanical modeling of traumatic brain injury (TBI) focuses on either the global brain as an organ or a representative tiny section of a single axon. In addition, while it is common for a global brain model to employ real-world impacts as input, axonal injury models have largely been limited to inputs of either tension or compression with assumed peak strain and strain rate. These major gaps between global and microscale modeling preclude a systematic and mechanistic investigation of how tissue strain from impact leads to downstream axonal damage throughout the white matter. In this study, a unique subject-specific multimodality dataset from a male ice-hockey player sustaining a diagnosed concussion is used to establish an efficient and scalable computational pipeline. It is then employed to derive voxelized brain deformation, maximum principal strains and white matter fiber strains, and finally, to produce diverse fiber strain profiles of various shapes in temporal history necessary for the development and application of a deep learning axonal injury model in the future. The pipeline employs a structured, voxelized representation of brain deformation with adjustable spatial resolution independent of model mesh resolution. The method can be easily extended to other head impacts or individuals. The framework established in this work is critical for enabling large-scale (i.e., across the entire white matter region, head impacts, and individuals) and multiscale (i.e., from organ to cell length scales) modeling for the investigation of traumatic axonal injury (TAI) triggering mechanisms. Ultimately, these efforts could enhance the assessment of concussion risks and design of protective headgear. Therefore, this work contributes to improved strategies for concussion detection, mitigation, and prevention.

Regional brain strain dependance on direction of head rotation

Brain injuries in automated vehicles during crash events are likely to include mechanisms of head impact in non-standard positions and postures (i.e., occupants not facing forward in an upright position). Federal regulations currently focus on impact conditions in primary planes of motion, such as frontal or rear impacts (sagittal plane of motion) or side impact (coronal plane of motion) and do not account for out of position occupants or non-standard postures. The objective of the present study was to develop and use the anatomically accurate brain finite element model to parametrically determine the injury metrics under different vectors with head rotation. A custom developed brain finite element model with anatomical accuracy and several anatomical regions defined was used to evaluate whole-brain strain as well as regional brain strain. Cumulative Strain Damage Measure (CSDM) at a threshold of 20% strain and the 95th percentile of the maximum principal strain (MPS95) were calculated for the whole brain and each brain region under multiple rotational directions. The model was exposed to a sinusoidal angular acceleration pulse of 5000 rad per second squared (rad/s2-) over 12.5 ms. The same pulse was used in the primary axes of motion and (lateral bending, flexion, extension, axial rotation) and combined axes representing oblique flexion and oblique extension. Whole brain CSDM20 was highest for lateral bending. Whole brain MPS95 was highest for axial rotation. The rCSDM20 was more susceptible to impact direction, with several brain regions having substantial accumulation of strain for oblique flexion and lateral bending. Comparatively, rMPS95 was more consistent across all rotation directions. The present study quantified the regional brain strain response under multiple rotational vectors identifying a high amount of variability in the accumulation of strain (i.e., CSDM20) in the hypothalamus, hippocampus, and midbrain specifically. While there was a high amount of variability in the accumulation of strain for multiple regions, the maximum strain measured (i.e., MPS95) in the regions was more consistent.

Effect of Direction and Frequency of Skull Motion on Mechanical Vulnerability of the Human Brain

Strain energy and kinetic energy in the human brain were estimated by magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) during harmonic excitation of the head, and compared to characterize the effect of loading direction and frequency on brain deformation. In brain MRE, shear waves are induced by external vibration of the skull and imaged by a modified MR imaging sequence; the resulting harmonic displacement fields are typically "inverted" to estimate mechanical properties, like stiffness or damping. However, measurements of tissue motion from MRE also illuminate key features of the response of the brain to skull loading. In this study, harmonic excitation was applied in two different directions and at five different frequencies from 20 to 90 Hz. Lateral loading induced primarily left-right head motion and rotation in the axial plane; occipital loading induced anterior-posterior head motion and rotation in the sagittal plane. The ratio of strain energy to kinetic energy (SE/KE) depended strongly on both direction and frequency. The ratio of SE/KE was approximately four times larger for lateral excitation than for occipital excitation and was largest at the lowest excitation frequencies studied. These results are consistent with clinical observations that suggest lateral impacts are more likely to cause injury than occipital or frontal impacts, and also with observations that the brain has low-frequency (∼10 Hz) natural modes of oscillation. The SE/KE ratio from brain MRE is potentially a simple and powerful dimensionless metric of brain vulnerability to deformation and injury.

A Morphologically Individualized Deep Learning Brain Injury Model

The brain injury modeling community has recommended improving model subject specificity and simulation efficiency. Here, we extend an instantaneous (< 1 sec) convolutional neural network (CNN) brain model based on the anisotropic Worcester Head Injury Model (WHIM) V1.0 to account for strain differences due to individual morphological variations. Linear scaling factors relative to the generic WHIM along the three anatomical axes are used as additional CNN inputs. To generate training samples, the WHIM is randomly scaled to pair with augmented head impacts randomly generated from real-world data for simulation. An estimation of voxelized peak maximum principal strain of the whole-brain is said to be successful when the linear regression slope and Pearson's correlation coefficient relative to directly simulated do not deviate from 1.0 (when identical) by more than 0.1. Despite a modest training dataset (N = 1363 vs. ∼5.7 k previously), the individualized CNN achieves a success rate of 86.2% in cross-validation for scaled model responses, and 92.1% for independent generic model testing for impacts considered as complete capture of kinematic events. Using 11 scaled subject-specific models (with scaling factors determined from pre-established regression models based on head dimensions and sex and age information, and notably, without neuroimages), the morphologically individualized CNN remains accurate for impacts that also yield successful estimations for the generic WHIM. The individualized CNN instantly estimates subject-specific and spatially detailed peak strains of the entire brain and thus, supersedes others that report a scalar peak strain value incapable of informing the location of occurrence. This tool could be especially useful for youths and females due to their anticipated greater morphological differences relative to the generic model, even without the need for individual neuroimages. It has potential for a wide range of applications for injury mitigation purposes and the design of head protective gears. The voxelized strains also allow for convenient data sharing and promote collaboration among research groups.

Sex Differences in Axonal Dynamic Responses Under Realistic Tension Using Finite Element Models

Existing axonal finite element models do not consider sex morphological differences or the fidelity in dynamic input. To facilitate a systematic investigation into the micromechanics of diffuse axonal injury, we develop a parameterized modeling approach for automatic and efficient generation of sex-specific axonal models according to specified geometrical parameters. Baseline female and male axonal models in the corpus callosum with random microtubule (MT) gap configurations are generated for model calibration and evaluation. They are then used to simulate a realistic tensile loading consisting of both a loading and a recovery phase (to return to an initial undeformed state) generated from dynamic corpus callosum fiber strain in a real-world head impact simulation. We find that MT gaps and the dynamic recovery phase are both critical to successfully reproduce MT undulation as observed experimentally, which has not been reported before. This strengthens confidence in model dynamic responses. A statistical approach is further employed to aggregate axonal responses from a large sample of random MT gap configurations for both female and male axonal models (n = 10,000 each). We find that peak strains in MTs and the Ranvier node and associated neurofilament failures in female axons are substantially higher than those in male axons because there are fewer MTs in the former and also because of the random nature of MT gap locations. Despite limitations in various model assumptions as a result of limited experimental data currently available, these findings highlight the need to systematically characterize MT gap configurations and to ensure a realistic model input for axonal dynamic simulations. Finally, this study may offer fresh and improved insight into the biomechanical basis of sex differences in brain injury, and sets the stage for more systematic investigations at the microscale in the future, both numerically and experimentally.

Use of Brain Biomechanical Models for Monitoring Impact Exposure in Contact Sports

Head acceleration measurement sensors are now widely deployed in the field to monitor head kinematic exposure in contact sports. The wealth of impact kinematics data provides valuable, yet challenging, opportunities to study the biomechanical basis of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) and subconcussive kinematic exposure. Head impact kinematics are translated into brain mechanical responses through physics-based computational simulations using validated brain models to study the mechanisms of injury. First, this article reviews representative legacy and contemporary brain biomechanical models primarily used for blunt impact simulation. Then, it summarizes perspectives regarding the development and validation of these models, and discusses how simulation results can be interpreted to facilitate injury risk assessment and head acceleration exposure monitoring in the context of contact sports. Recommendations and consensus statements are presented on the use of validated brain models in conjunction with kinematic sensor data to understand the biomechanics of mTBI and subconcussion. Mainly, there is general consensus that validated brain models have strong potential to improve injury prediction and interpretation of subconcussive kinematic exposure over global head kinematics alone. Nevertheless, a major roadblock to this capability is the lack of sufficient data encompassing different sports, sex, age and other factors. The authors recommend further integration of sensor data and simulations with modern data science techniques to generate large datasets of exposures and predicted brain responses along with associated clinical findings. These efforts are anticipated to help better understand the biomechanical basis of mTBI and improve the effectiveness in monitoring kinematic exposure in contact sports for risk and injury mitigation purposes.

Drop Test Kinematics Using Varied Impact Surfaces and Head/Neck Configurations for Rugby Headgear Testing

World Rugby employs a specific drop test method to evaluate headgear performance, but almost all researchers use a different variation of this method. The aim of this study was, therefore, to quantify the differences between variations of the drop testing method using a Hybrid III headform and neck in the following impact setups: (1) headform only, with a flat steel impact surface, approximating the World Rugby method, (2 and 3) headform with and without a neck, respectively, onto a flat MEP pad impact surface, and (4) headform and neck, dropped onto an angled MEP pad impact surface. Each variation was subject to drop heights of 75-600 mm across three orientations (forehead, side, and rear boss). Comparisons were limited to the linear and rotational acceleration and rotational velocity for simplicity. Substantial differences in kinematic profile shape manifested between all drop test variations. Peak accelerations varied highly between variations, but the peak rotational velocities did not. Drop test variation also significantly changed the ratios of the peak kinematics to each other. This information can be compared to kinematic data from field head impacts and could inform more realistic impact testing methods for assessing headgear.