Neck Muscle and Head/Neck Kinematic Responses While Bracing Against the Steering Wheel During Front and Rear Impacts.

Neck Muscle and Head/Neck Kinematic Responses While Bracing Against the Steering Wheel During Front and Rear Impacts. Ann Biomed Eng. 2020 Nov 19;: Authors: Fice JB, Mang DWH, Ólafsdóttir JM, Brolin K, Cripton PA, Blouin JS, Siegmund GP Abstract Drivers often react to an impending collision by bracing against the steering wheel. The goal of the present study was to quantify the effect of bracing on neck muscle activity and head/torso kinematics during low-speed front and rear impacts. Eleven seated subjects (3F, 8 M) experienced multiple sled impacts (Δv = 0.77 m/s; apeak = 19.9 m/s2, Δt = 65.5 ms) with their hands on the steering wheel in two conditions: relaxed and braced against the steering wheel. Electromyographic activity in eight neck muscles (sternohyoid, sternocleidomastoid, splenius capitis, semispinalis capitis, semispinalis cervicis, multifidus, levator scapulae, and trapezius) was recorded unilaterally with indwelling electrodes and normalized by maximum voluntary contraction (MVC) levels. Head and torso kinematics (linear acceleration, angular velocity, angular rotation, and retraction) were measured with sensors and motion tracking. Muscle and kinematic variables were compared between the relaxed and braced conditions using linear mixed models. We found that pre-impact bracing generated only small increases in the pre-impact muscle activity (< 5% MVC) when compared to the relaxed condition. Pre...
Source: Annals of Biomedical Engineering - Category: Biomedical Engineering Authors: Tags: Ann Biomed Eng Source Type: research