title: Burst inflation test for measuring biomechanical properties of rat abdominal walls.
abstract: Evaluation of potential grafts to improve upon current strategies for abdominal wall (AW) repair in small animal models typically involves mechanical testing using methods that currently are inadequate to assess physiologically relevant parameters. This study introduces burst inflation testing as a more relevant assessment of the mechanical integrity of the AW compared to traditional tensile testing.
  
  
  
  AWs were excised from 14 healthy adult Fischer 344 rats and tested using either a custom burst inflation device or an Instron tensile testing system. Modulus outcomes from both testing methods were compared.
  
  
  
  Mechanical analyses of native AW using burst and tensile testing methods resulted in similar average tissue moduli, but with the burst test, there was significantly less variability among specimens.
  
  
  
  The burst test had greater repeatability compared to tensile testing and has the ability to test repaired AWs without compromising the integrity of the repair site, making it a useful tool for assessing graft repairs.
authors.affiliation: Section of Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA. vasum@umich.edu.|Department of Molecular and Integrative Physiology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA. vasum@umich.edu.
authors.forename: V D
authors.initials: VD
authors.lastname: Mahalingam
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
authors.forename: B C
authors.initials: BC
authors.lastname: Syverud
authors.affiliation: Section of Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Myers
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular and Integrative Physiology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
authors.forename: K W
authors.initials: KW
authors.lastname: VanDusen
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular and Integrative Physiology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.|Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
authors.forename: L M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Larkin
authors.affiliation: Section of Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.|Ann Arbor Veterans Administration Medical Center, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
authors.forename: W M
authors.initials: WM
authors.lastname: Kuzon
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.|Department of Mechanical Engineering, Program in Macromolecular Science and Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
authors.forename: E M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Arruda
mesh_terms: D034861:Abdominal Wall / Q000601:surgery*; D000818:Animals; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D008422:Materials Testing; D023421:Models, Animal; D051381:Rats; D011916:Rats, Inbred F344; D013718:Tensile Strength
keywords: Burst inflation; Incisional hernia; Mechanical test; Modulus; Tensile strength