Morpho-mechanical mapping of human dura mater microstructure

Niels Hammer

Division of Macroscopic and Clinical Anatomy, Gottfried Schatz Research Center, Medical University of Graz, Austria

Dura mater has significant impact on traumatic brain mechanobiology and injury. However, dura mater is neglected in numerical and physical head models. The lack of site specific morpho-mechanical data of dura may be considered a critical rationale behind this simplification. This study aimed to assess how location-dependent mechanical anisotropy is linked to principal collagen fiber orientation. Stress and stretch at failure, elastic modulus, and a microstructurally motivated material model were integrated to examine local differences in morpho-mechanics. A non-symmetrical fiber dispersion material model fits the data well and offers a comprehensive parameter base for further studies and finite element models.