Gender differences in neck biomechanics relevant to whiplash injury

女性比男性有更高的风险挥鞭样损伤。这种高风险的原因尚不清楚，但性别之间的这种差异提供了一个机会，以增加我们对挥鞭样损伤如何发展的理解。拟议研究的总体目标是确定可能解释女性与男性相比挥鞭样损伤风险增加的解剖学和生物力学因素。为了实现这一目标，将对女性/男性进行以下方面的比较：1）颈部肌肉的大小和形状; 2）在不同姿势下以及在不同自主任务和冲击暴露期间颈椎的排列和运动模式;以及3）在不同自主任务和冲击暴露期间产生的肌肉激活模式。为了将性别差异与女性和男性之间更明显的体型差异隔离开来，将对四组受试者进行拟定研究：两组第50百分位女性和第50百分位男性，以及两组体型匹配的女性和男性。这项研究的第一部分将使用受试者的磁共振（MR）扫描来检查他们的颈部肌肉，第二部分将使用X射线透视来检查他们的颈椎的运动模式，第三部分将使用植入颈部肌肉的电线来测量他们的浅表和深层颈部肌肉的肌肉活动。基于我们先前的工作，即使在大小匹配的女性和男性受试者中，预计肌肉大小、颈椎姿势和运动以及肌肉激活模式也存在性别相关差异。拟议研究的直接好处将是更好地了解女性与男性相比颈部扭伤风险更高的原因。拟议研究的间接好处将是开发女性碰撞测试假人和计算机模型所需的数据，这些假人和计算机模型可用于设计座椅和头枕，以保护最容易发生挥鞭样损伤的人群-女性。

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.