Grant: Discovery Grants Program - Individual

Whiplash injuries are caused by accelerations of the head and thorax in automobile collisions, and also in sports such as hockey. Although whiplash injuries are generally not life threatening, they are common, expensive and can have significant long-term consequences; the economic cost related to whiplash injury, including medical care, disability, sick leave, and lost work productivity, has been estimated to be as high as $3.9 billion annually in the United States, and a similar proportion in Canada based on population. The proposed research extends my ongoing investigations of biomechanical joint form and function to the cervical spine. The proposed studies involve laboratory-based studies of head and neck response to whiplash-like perturbations using anatomical specimens. This research will determine the loads within individual spinal ligaments throughout the whiplash perturbation via biomechanical testing using a robot to control the motion of the specimen. It is necessary to use anatomical specimens since it is impossible to perform this level of analysis using living people. However, this testing approach can not assess the contribution of muscles. Accordingly we will perform human volunteer studies to evaluate the role of the neck muscles during whiplash-like perturbations. The perturbations will be controlled through motion of a robotic platform, and are similar to a bumper car collision. Together these two research areas will help determine how whiplash loads are borne by the neck ligaments and muscles. This information will be assembed into a framework (model) to permit analysis of loads within the neck ligaments and muscles during more severe automobile collisions, and will be applied to help develop new approaches for improving automobile safety and decreasing the risk of developing whiplash.