title: Wound ballistics of the pig mandibular angle: a preliminary finite element analysis and experimental study.
abstract: To study wound ballistics of the mandibular angle, a combined hexahedral-tetrahedral finite element (FE) model of the pig mandible was developed to simulate ballistic impact. An experimental study was carried out by measuring impact load parameters from 14 fresh pig mandibles that were shot at the mandibular angle by a standard 7.62 mm M43 bullet. FE analysis was executed through the LS-DYNA code under impact loads similar to those obtained from the experimental study. The resulting residual velocity, the transferred energy from the bullet to the mandible, and the surface area of the entrance wound had no statistical differences between the FE simulation and the experimental study. However, the mean surface area of the exit wounds in the experimental study was significantly larger than that in the simulation. According to the FE analysis, the stress concentrated zones were mainly located at the region of impact, condylar neck, coronoid process and mandibular body. The simulation results also indicated that trabecular bone had less stress concentration and a lower speed of stress propagation compared with cortical bone. The FE model is appropriate and conforms to the basic principles of wound ballistics. This modeling system will be helpful for further investigations of the biomechanical mechanisms of wound ballistics.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Xinqiao Hospital, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing 400037, PR China.
authors.forename: Yubin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Yingyun
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Miao
authors.forename: Chuan
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Gang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Tao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Lei
authors.forename: Yinghui
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tan
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D003198:Computer Simulation; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D020342:Finite Element Analysis; D044709:Forensic Ballistics / Q000379:methods* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D008338:Mandibular Injuries / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008953:Models, Anatomic; D008954:Models, Biological; D017711:Nonlinear Dynamics; D013314:Stress, Mechanical; D034421:Sus scrofa; D014948:Wounds, Gunshot / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D014950:Wounds, Penetrating / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology