Finite Element Method Analysis of Compression Fractures on Whole-Spine Models Including the Rib Cage.

Finite Element Method Analysis of Compression Fractures on Whole-Spine Models Including the Rib Cage.
Comput Math Methods Med. 2019;2019:8348631
Authors: Nishida N, Ohgi J, Jiang F, Ito S, Imajo Y, Suzuki H, Funaba M, Nakashima D, Sakai T, Chen X
Abstract
Spinal compression fractures commonly occur at the thoracolumbar junction. We have previously constructed a 3-dimensional whole-spine model from medical images by using the finite element method (FEM) and then used this model to develop a compression fracture model. However, these models lacked the rib cage. No previous study has used whole-spine models including the rib cage constructed from medical images to analyze compression fractures. Therefore, in this study, we added the rib cage to whole-spine models. We constructed the models, including a normal spine model without the rib cage, a whole-spine model with the rib cage, and whole-spine models with compression fractures, using FEM analysis. Then, we simulated a person falling on the buttocks to perform stress analysis on the models and to examine to what extent the rib cage affects the analysis of compression fractures. The results showed that the intensity of strain and the vertebral body with minimum principle strain differed between the spine model including the rib cage and that excluding the rib cage. The strain on the spine model excluding the rib cage had approximately twice the intensity of the strain on the spine mode...

Source: Computational and Mathematical Methods in Medicine - June 15, 2019 Category: Statistics Tags: Comput Math Methods Med Source Type: research