Cavitation causes brain injury
Ji Lang, Rungun Nathan, Dong Zhou, Xuewei Zhang, Bo Li, Qianhong Wu
Abstract
In this study, an artificial transparent head surrogate with high-speed photography discovers the formation and collapse of cavitation bubbles near the contrecoup regions as the head is exposed to a sudden translational impact. The cavitation damages the brain surface and produces a shock wave through the brain matter. Based on a novel experimental design, this new finding uncovers the mystery of the motion and deformation of the soft brain matter, which is not visible otherwise. It suggests that current brain injury criteria may underestimate the risk of head collision.
Topics & Concepts
CavitationPhysicsShock (circulatory)Shock waveHead (geology)MechanicsMedicineGeomorphologyGeologyInternal medicineAutomotive and Human Injury BiomechanicsTraumatic Brain Injury and Neurovascular DisturbancesTraumatic Ocular and Foreign Body Injuries