Biomechanics is the application of mechanics to the study the structure, function, and motion of mechanical parts of the biological systems at every level. It can be used to study the structure of full-grown individuals to single cells, organs, and cell organelles. Biomechanics is a subfield of biophysics concerned with the mechanics of living things.
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Biofluid Mechanics
The exploration of both gas and liquid fluid streams in and around biological organisms is known as biofluid mechanics or biological fluid mechanics. Blood flow in the human circulatory system is a well-studied liquid biofluid problem. The Navier–Stokes equations could be used to represent blood flow in specific mathematical situations. Entire blood is thought to be an incompressible Newtonian fluid In vivo. When examining forward flow within arterioles, though, this hypothesis contradicts. Individual red blood cells have major impacts at the microscopic scale, and total blood could no longer be described as a continuum.
The Fahraeus–Lindquist phenomenon occurs whenever the diameter of the blood artery is only slightly greater than the red blood cell’s diameter, resulting in a reduction in wall shear stress. Consequently, as the blood vessel’s width shrinks more, red blood cells are forced to compress through it and could only flow in a single file. The inverse Fahraeus–Lindquist effect happens in this scenario, as well as the wall shear stress rises.
Human respiration seems to be an instance of a gaseous biofluid’s difficulty. Insect respiratory systems have lately been explored for bioinspiration to create better microfluidic devices.
Biotribology
The study of wear, friction, and lubrication in biological processes, particularly human joints including hips and knees, is known as biotribology. Such processes are generally investigated in the field of contact mechanics and tribology.
The impact of rubbing two different surfaces against each other on either surface is determined by friction, wear, and lubrication just at the contact point. During daily activities like stair climbing or walking, the femoral and tibial elements of knee implants, for instance, rub against one other. If the tibial component’s performance is required to be evaluated, contact mechanics and tribology concepts are conducted to analyze the implant’s wear performance as well as the lubricating impacts of synovial fluid.
Evaluation of subsurface destruction caused by two surfaces coming into contact while in motion, — in other words rubbing against one another, is another part of biotribology, as seen in the assessment of tissue-engineered cartilage.
Comparative Biomechanics
Comparative biomechanics exercise science is the study of non-human species using biomechanics, whether to learn more about people (as in physical anthropology) or to learn more about the roles, ecology, and adaptations of the species themselves. Animal movement and feeding are frequently researched topics because they have strong links to an organism’s fitness and impose substantial mechanical demands. Jumping, Running, and flying are just a few examples of animal movement. To overcome friction, inertia, drag, and gravity, locomotion necessitates energy, albeit which factor takes precedence depends on the surroundings.
Numerous other subjects, such as neuroscience, ethology, ecology, developmental biology, and paleontology, have considerable overlaps with comparative biomechanics, to the point where publications from these subjects are frequently published in journals from these other subjects. Comparative biomechanics is frequently used in medicine and biomimetics, which seeks solutions to engineering challenges by looking to nature.
Computational Biomechanics
Computational biomechanics is the study of the mechanics of biological systems using engineering computational methods including the Finite element method. Computational models and simulations have been used to forecast the link between factors that would be difficult to test empirically or to create more relevant tests that save time and money. For example, mechanical modeling employing finite element analysis is being used to evaluate actual observations of plant cell proliferation to truly comprehend how they differentiate. In medicine, the Finite element method has proved itself as a viable alternative to in vivo surgical evaluation over the last decade.
One of the great benefits of computational biomechanics is its capacity to identify an anatomy’s endo-anatomical reaction without really being bound by ethical constraints. As a result, FE modeling has become commonplace in numerous domains of biomechanics, and some projects have embraced an open-source mindset (e.g. BioSpine).
Experimental Biomechanics
The application of experiments and measurements in biomechanics is known as experimental biomechanics.
Continuum Biomechanics
The mechanical analysis of biomaterials, as well as biofluids, is mainly done using continuum mechanics ideas. When the length scales of interest reach the scale of the object’s tiny structural features, such a hypothesis breaks out. The hierarchical structure of biomaterials has been one of their most striking features. To put it another way, the mechanical properties of these materials are based on physical events taking place at numerous levels, from molecule to tissue and organ.
Hard and soft tissues are the two types of biomaterials. The theory of linear elasticity can be used to analyze the mechanical deformation of hard tissues (such as shells, wood, and bone). Soft tissues, but on the other hand, such as skin, muscle, tendon, and cartilage, are prone to massive deformations, necessitating the use of finite strain theory and computer simulations in their evaluation. The necessity for realism in the creation of medical simulations has sparked interest in continuum biomechanics.
Plant Biomechanics
Plant biomechanics is a subfield of biomechanics that applies the principle of biomechanics to plants, plant parts, and cells. Biomechanics in plants is used to examine everything from crop resilience to environmental stress to cell and tissue growth and morphogenesis, and it overlaps with mechanobiology.
Sports Biomechanics
The rules of mechanics are subjected to human motion in sport and exercise biomechanics to have a better knowledge of athletic performance and to decrease sports injuries. It concentrates on the application of mechanical physics principles to comprehend the motion and movements of humans and sports equipment including cricket bats, hockey sticks, and javelins, among others.
In sports biomechanics, gait analysis (– for example, force platforms), mechanical engineering (– for example, strain gauges), computer science (– for example, numerical methods), electrical engineering (– for example, digital filtering), and clinical neurophysiology (– for example, surface EMG) are all employed.
Biomechanics sports science refers to the body’s muscle, joint, and skeletal motions while carrying out a task, talent, or method. Sports performance, rehabilitation, and pain management/injury prevention, as well as sports mastery, are all impacted by a proper grasp of biomechanics linked to sports skills.
Applications
Biomechanics encompasses everything from the inner workings of cells to the movement and growth of limbs, as well as the mechanical characteristics of soft tissue and bones. The exploration of forces acting on limbs, the fluid dynamics of swimming in fish, the aerodynamics of bird and insect flight, and movement in general throughout all forms of life, from single cells to complete creatures, are just a few simple instances of biomechanics research. Researchers can enhance the area of tissue engineering and develop better treatments for a variety of illnesses, such as cancer, attributable to a greater understanding of the physiological behaviour of live tissues.
Human musculoskeletal systems are also studied using biomechanics. Force platforms are used to understand human ground reaction forces, while infrared videography is used to film the trajectories of markers connected to the body of a human to analyze human 3D motion. Electromyography is also used in research to investigate muscle activation and muscular responses to external forces and disturbances.
In the orthopaedic sector, biomechanics is commonly used to design orthopaedic implants for external fixations, dental parts, human joints, and other medical applications. Biotribology is a crucial component of it. It’s a research project that looks into the performance and functionality of biomaterials used in orthopaedic implants. It is crucial in improving the design and production of effective biomaterials for medical and clinical applications. Tissue-created cartilage is one prominent example. Emanuel Willert goes into great detail about the dynamic loading of joints that are regarded to be impactful.
As it frequently uses traditional engineering sciences to investigate biological systems, this is also linked to the area of engineering. Simple Newtonian mechanics and/or materials science techniques could provide accurate approximations to the dynamics of several biological systems. In the research of biomechanics, applied mechanics, particularly mechanical engineering disciplines including mechanism analysis, kinematics, structural analysis, continuum mechanics, and dynamics, play a significant role.
Biological systems are typically vastly more challenging than man-made systems. As a result, numerical approaches are used in practically every biomechanical study. Hypothesis and validation are tested in an iterative procedure that includes modeling, computer simulation, and experimental investigation.