Abstract

Colles' fracture, a transverse fracture of the distal radius bone, is one of the most frequently observed osteoporotic fractures resulting from low energy or traumatic events, associated with low and high strain rates, respectively. Although experimental studies on Colles' fracture were carried out at various loading rates ranging from static to impact loadings, there is no systematic study in the literature that isolates the influence of strain rate on Colles' fracture load. In order to provide a better understanding of fracture risk, the current study combines experimental material property measurements under varying strain rates with computational modeling and presents new information on the effect of strain rate on Colles' fracture. The simulation results showed that Colles' fracture load decreased with increasing strain rate with a steeper change in lower strain rates. Specifically, strain rate values (0.29s(-1)) associated with controlled falling without fracture corresponded to a 3.7% reduction in the fracture load. On the other hand, the reduction in the fracture load was 34% for strain rate of 3.7s(-1) reported in fracture inducing impact cadaver experiments. Further increase in the strain rate up to 18s(-1) led to an additional 22% reduction. The most drastic reduction in fracture load occurs at strain rates corresponding to the transition from controlled to impact falling. These results are particularly important for the improvement of fracture risk assessment in the elderly because they identify a critical range of loading rates (10-50mm/s) that can dramatically increase the risk of Colles' fracture.

Links

Publisher Full Text

Authors

Ural A, Zioupos P, Buchanan D, Vashishth D

Institution

Department of Mechanical Engineering, Villanova University, 800 Lancaster Avenue, Villanova, PA 19085, USA. ani.ural@villanova.edu

Source

Journal of biomechanics 45:10 2012 Jun 26 pg 1854-7

MeSH

Accidental Falls
Humans
Models, Biological
Radius
Radius Fractures
Weight-Bearing

Pub Type(s)

Journal Article
Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

Language

eng

PubMed ID

22560644