Gender differences in neck biomechanics relevant to whiplash injury

女性比男性更容易受到鞭伤。这种高风险的原因尚不清楚，但性别之间的差异提供了一个机会，增加我们对鞭打伤如何发展的理解。拟议研究的总体目标是确定解剖学和生物力学因素，可能解释女性与男性相比颈部扭伤损伤风险增加的原因。为了实现这一目标，将对女性和男性进行比较：1)颈部肌肉的大小和形状；2)不同姿势、不同自愿任务和冲击暴露时颈椎的对齐和运动模式；3)不同自愿任务和冲击暴露时产生的肌肉激活模式。为了将性别差异从男女之间更明显的体型差异中分离出来，拟议的研究将在四组受试者中进行：两组第50百分位女性和第50百分位男性，两组体型匹配的女性和男性。本研究的第一部分将使用磁共振（MR）扫描受试者来检查他们的颈部肌肉，第二部分将使用x射线透视检查他们的颈椎运动模式，第三部分将使用植入颈部肌肉的金属丝来测量他们颈部浅部和深层肌肉的肌肉活动。根据我们之前的工作，即使在大小匹配的女性和男性受试者中，肌肉大小、颈部椎体姿势和运动以及肌肉激活模式的性别相关差异预计也会存在。这项研究的直接好处将是更好地理解女性比男性更容易受到颈部扭伤的原因。这项拟议研究的间接好处是，将为开发女性碰撞试验假人和计算机模型提供所需的数据，这些数据可用于设计座椅和头枕，以保护女性这一人群中最容易受到颈部扭伤的人群。

Females have a higher risk of whiplash injury than males.The reason for this higher risk is not clear, but this difference between genders provides an opportunity to increase our understanding of how whiplash injuries develops. The overall objective of the proposed research is to identify anatomical and biomechanical factors that potentially explain the increased risk of whiplash injury in females compared to males. To achieve this objective, female/male comparisons will be made of 1) the size and shape of the muscles of the neck, 2) the alignment and motion patterns of the neck vertebra in different postures and during different voluntary tasks and impact exposures, and 3) the muscle activation patterns generated during different voluntary tasks and impact exposures. In order to isolate gender differences from the more obvious size differences between women and men, the proposed studies will be performed on four groups of subjects: two groups of 50th percentile females and 50th percentile males, and two groups of size-matched females and males. Part 1 of this research will use magnetic resonance (MR) scans of the subjects to examine their neck muscles, Part 2 will use x-ray fluoroscopy to examine the movement patterns of their neck vertebra, and Part 3 will be performed using wires implanted in the neck muscles to measure muscle activity in their superficial and deep neck muscles. Based on our prior work, gender-related differences in muscle size, neck vertebral posture and movement, and muscle activation pattern are expected to be present, even in size-matched female and male subjects. The direct benefit of the proposed research will be a significantly better understanding of the reasons for higher whiplash injury risks in females compared to males. The indirect benefits of the proposed research will be the data needed to develop female crash test dummies and computer models that can be used to design seats and head restraints to protect the segment of the population--females--at greatest risk for whiplash injury.