You are here

Biomechanical Rat Testing Device to Validate Primary Blast Loading Conditions for Mild Traumatic Brain Injury

Award Information
Agency: Department of Defense
Branch: Defense Health Agency
Contract: W81XWH18C0126
Agency Tracking Number: A2-7187
Amount: $999,878.00
Phase: Phase II
Program: STTR
Solicitation Topic Code: A17A-T022
Solicitation Number: 17.A
Timeline
Solicitation Year: 2017
Award Year: 2018
Award Start Date (Proposal Award Date): 2018-08-24
Award End Date (Contract End Date): 2021-01-26
Small Business Information
16 Great Hollow Road
Hanover, NH 03755
United States
DUNS: 072021041
HUBZone Owned: No
Woman Owned: No
Socially and Economically Disadvantaged: No
Principal Investigator
 Jed C Wilbur
 Principal Investigator
 (603) 640-2501
 jcw@creare.com
Business Contact
 Betsy Williams
Phone: (603) 640-2331
Email: contractsmgr@creare.com
Research Institution
 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
 William O'Brien, Jr. William O'Brien, Jr.
 
405 North Mathews Avenue Array
Urbana, IL 61801
United States

 (217) 333-2407
 Nonprofit College or University
Abstract

Blast induced Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is a major threat to the health of military personnel serving in modern theaters. As such, the biomechanical injury pathways of TBI are, and have been, the focus of many animal studies. However, differences in the experimental setups across laboratories make it difficult to draw definitive conclusions from the resulting data. A tool that can accurately estimate the biomechanical loading experienced by the rat model across sites is needed; such a tool would also provide an approach for validating computational models of neurotrauma. Creare, working with our STTR partners at the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign, is developing the Rat Surrogate for TBI Studies (RSTS). The RSTS is a biofidelic model of a rat designed from three dimensional medical images and manufactured using modern rapid prototyping technologies. This biofidelity offers key physiological components that are relevant during blast loading. It is instrumented with sensors to best capture the biomechanical loading conditions most relevant to TBI. The RSTS will provide researchers with the missing tool needed to accurately correlate pressure wave insults with the biomechanical loading experienced by the animal.

* Information listed above is at the time of submission. *

US Flag An Official Website of the United States Government