Simulation of brain-skull development utilizing a hybrid model

This paper describes a hybrid model which includes both standard finite element and rigid bodies for a clinical application involving skull-brain co-development in infants, with particular application for craniosynostosis modeling. To accommodate the rapid expanding brain during the first few months after birth, the skull needs to extend fast enough to increase its inner volume. Sutures that are fibrous tissues uniting the skull plates together are the major sites for skull growth during this period. At the sutures, the skull develops along these fronts in order to try to maintain the unossfied state itself. Craniosynostosis, which is a developmental abnormality, occurs when one or more sutures are fused early in life (even in utero) while the skull is growing, resulting in an abnormal skull shape. Surgery is required to reopen the suture and reduce the excessive intracranial pressure, but leaving neurosurgeons difficulties without any predicting model to assist surgical plan. Before achieve our final goal (predict patient-specific post-surgical head development), we aim to firstly study normal brain-skull growth by computer simulation, which requires a head model and appropriate mathematical algorithms for brain and skull growth respectively. On the basis of previous model, we further specified suture model into fibrous and cartilaginous sutures and develop mathematical model for skull extension. We were able to produce a series of cranial shape indices along the simulation, part of which discrepancies from reference data due to instability of the model. Some potential future work would be discussed to maintain the stability.