Subject-specific rib finite element models with material data derived from coupon tests under bending loading

Rib fractures are common thoracic injuries in motor vehicle crashes. Several human finite element (FE) human models have been created to numerically assess thoracic injury risks. However, the accurate prediction of rib biomechanical response has shown to be challenging due to human variation and modeling approaches. The main objective of this study was to better understand the role of modeling approaches on the biomechanical response of human ribs in anterior-posterior bending. Since the development of subject specific rib models is a time-consuming process, the second objective of this study was to develop an accurate morphing approach to quickly generate high quality subject specific rib meshes. The exterior geometries and cortical-trabecular boundaries of five human 6th-level ribs were extracted from CT-images. One rib mesh was developed in a parametric fashion and the other four ribs were developed with an in-house morphing algorithm. The morphing algorithm automatically defined landmarks on both the periosteal and endosteal boundaries of the cortical layer, which were used to morph the template nodes to target geometries. Three different cortical bone material models were defined based on the stress-strain data obtained from subject-specific tensile coupon tests for each rib. Full rib anterior-posterior bending tests were simulated based on data recorded in testing. The results showed similar trends to test data with some sensitivity relative to the material modeling approach. Additionally, the FE models were substantially more resistant to failure, highlighting the need for better techniques to model rib fracture. Overall, the results of this work can be used to improve the biofidelity of human rib finite element models.

Automated summary

Rib fractures are common thoracic injuries in motor vehicle crashes. Several human finite element models have been created to assess thoracic injury risks, but accurate prediction of rib biomechanical response is challenging. This study aimed to understand the role of modeling approaches on human rib biomechanical response and develop an accurate morphing approach for subject specific rib meshes. The results showed sensitivity to material modeling approach and highlighted the need for better techniques to model rib fracture in order to improve the biofidelity of human rib finite element models.