Michael T. Prange, Ph.D., P.E.

Dr. Prange addresses issues involving human injury biomechanics and occupant kinematics to assess the severity and mechanism of injury incurred during traumatic events. He has expertise in human injury biomechanics, specializing in head and neck injury tolerance, pediatric biomechanics, and occupant kinematics. Dr. Prange has over a decade of experience addressing questions involving the unique aspects of pediatric biomechanics and injuries. His work includes analysis of injuries occurring in transportation accidents; incidents involving consumer products; and accidental and inflicted injury scenarios. Dr. Prange has investigated the injury mechanisms and kinematics of children during automotive transportation (vehicle seatbelts, child safety restraints, airbags), accidental falls, and child abuse.

Dr. Prange’s research interests include adult and pediatric head and neck injury mechanisms and tolerance. His research experience includes studies of traumatic brain injury, neck and spine structural and failure properties, child restraint systems, biomechanics of shaken baby syndrome and household falls, biological material testing, viscoelastic mechanical properties of tissue, helmet protection, and computational models of injury prediction. Dr. Prange also has unique experience in the determination of pediatric head and neck structural properties and injury tolerances using pediatric cadaveric specimens.

Prior to joining Exponent, Dr. Prange was a Senior Research Scientist in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Duke University and a research assistant in the Injury Biomechanics Laboratory at the University of Pennsylvania. He was the project leader on a grant investigating pediatric head and neck biomechanics. Dr. Prange’s research has been featured on CNN, BBC, Primetime Live and in Discover Magazine.

Moore T, Prange MT, Corrigan C. Inertially-induced cervical spine injuries in the pediatric population. Society of Automotive Engineers, SAE 2009-01-0395, 2009. (Presented at the 2009 SAE World Congress, Detroit, MI).

Bussone W, Moore T, Richards D, Bove R, Scher I, Prange MT. Measurements of non-injurious head accelerations of a pediatric population. Society of Automotive Engineers, SAE 2009-01-0383, 2009. (Presented at the 2009 SAE World Congress, Detroit, MI).

Van Arsdell W, Marsden A, Amirault D, Oltman S, Richards D, Prange MT. Effect of padding on child restraint performance during side impact collisions. Society of Automotive Engineers, SAE 2009-01-1244, 2009. (Presented at the 2009 SAE World Congress, Detroit, MI).

Heller M, Watson H, Ivarsson B, Prange MT, Fisher J. Using national databases to evaluate injury patterns in pedestrian impacts. Society of Automotive Engineers, SAE 2009-01-1209, 2009. (Presented at the 2009. SAE World Congress, Detroit, MI).

Luck JF, Nightingale RW, Loyd AM, Prange MT, Dibb AT, Song Y, Fronheiser L, Myers BS. Tensile mechanical properties of the perinatal and pediatric PMHS osteoligamentous cervical spine. Stapp Car Crash Journal 2008; 52:107–134. (Presented at the 52th Stapp Car Crash Conference, San Antonio, TX).

Prange MT, Moore T, Newberry W, Peterson D, Smyth B, Corrigan C. Inertial neck injuries in children involved in frontal collisions. Society of Automotive Engineers, SAE 2007-01-1170, 2007. (Presented at the 2007 SAE World Congress, Detroit, MI).

Nightingale RW, Chancey VC, Ottaviano D, Luck JF, Tran L, Prange MT, Myers BS. Flexion and extension structural properties and strengths for male cervical spine segments. J Biomech 2007; 40(3):535–542.

Zhu Q, Prange MT, Margulies SS. Predicting unconsciousness from a pediatric brain injury threshold. Dev Neurosci 2006; 28(4–5):388–395.

Prange MT, Luck JL, A Dibb A, Van Ee CA, Nightingale RW, Myers BS. Mechanical properties and anthropometry of the human infant head. Stapp Car Crash Journal 2004; 48:279–299, 2004. (Presented at the 48th Stapp Car Crash Conference, Nashville, TN).

Prange MT, Coats B, Duhaime AC, Margulies SS. Anthropomorphic simulations of falls, shakes, and inflicted impacts in infants. J Neurosurgery 2003; 99:143–150.

Prange MT, Margulies SS. Regional, directional, and age-dependent properties of brain undergoing large deformation. J Biomech Eng 2002; 124(2):224–252.

Prange MT, Meaney DF, Margulies SS. Defining brain mechanical properties: Effects of region, direction, and species. Stapp Car Crash Journal 2000; 44:205–213. 2000. (Presented at the 44th Stapp Car Crash Conference, Atlanta, GA).

Prange MT, Kiralyfalvi G, Margulies SS. Pediatric rotational inertial brain injury: The relative influence of brain size and mechanical properties. Stapp Car Crash Conference Proceedings, SAE Paper #99SC23, pp. 333 341, 1999. (Presented at the 43th Stapp Car Crash Conference, San Diego, CA). Student Paper Award.

Prange MT, Margulies SS. Anisotropy and inhomogeneity of the mechanical properties of brain tissue at large deformation. 9th Injury Prevention Through Biomechanics Symposium Proceedings, 1999.

Prange MT, Meaney DF, Margulies SS. Directional properties of gray and white matter. 8th Injury Prevention Through Biomechanics Symposium, pp 65–74, 1998.

Arbogast KB, Prange MT, Meaney DF, Margulies SS. Properties of cerebral gray and white matter undergoing large deformation. 7th Injury Prevention Through Biomechanics Symposium, pp 33–40, 1997.

Book Chapters

Prange MT, Myers BS. Pathobiology and biomechanics of inflicted childhood trauma—Response. In: Inflicted Childhood Neurotrauma, American Academy of Pediatrics, pp. 237–243, 2003.

Abstracts and Presentations

Heller M. George J, Yamaguchi G, McGowan J, Prange M. Linear head accelerations resulting from short falls onto the occiput in children. Annual Meeting for the American Society of Biomechanics, State College, PA, 2009.

Moore T, Prange MT, Newberry W, Peterson D, Smyth B, Corrigan C. Inertial neck injuries in children involved in frontal collisions: Sled testing using the 6-year-old ATD. American Society of Mechanical Engineers Summer Bioengineering Conference, Keystone, CO, 2007.

Zhu Q, Prange MT, Margulies SS. Predicting unconsciousness from a pediatric brain injury threshold. 5th World Congress of Biomechanics, Munich, Germany, 2006.

Luck JF, Nightingale RW, Loyd A, Dibb A, Ottaviano D, Prange MT, Myers BS. Tensile mechanical properties of the pediatric human osteoligamentous cervical spine. 5th World Congress of Biomechanics, Munich, Germany, 2006.

Prange MT, Margulies SS. Predictions of infant brain injures in minor falls and inflicted events. 4th World Congress of Biomechanics, Calgary, Canada, 2002.

Prange MT. Adult neck injuries and helmets. Review of Pediatric Head and Neck Injury, Sponsored by Snell Memorial Foundation, Philadelphia, PA, 2003.

Prange MT, Coats B, Raghupathi R, Duhaime AC, Margulies SS. Rotational loads during inflicted and accidental infant head injury. Neurotrauma Society Symposium, San Diego, CA, 2001.

Duhaime AC, Prange MT, Christian C, Margulies SS. Smarter dummies: Infant head injury thresholds from improved anthropomorphic modeling. American Association for Neurosurgeons – Pediatric Division, 2001.

Prange MT, Coats B, Duhaime AC, Margulies SS. Biomechanics of accidental and inflicted head injuries in the infant. Biomedical Engineering Society Conference, Durham, NC, 2001.

Prange MT, Margulies SS. Tissue strain thresholds for axonal injury in the infant brain. American Society of Mechanical Engineers Summer Bioengineering Conference, Snowbird, UT, June 2001.

Prange MT, Margulies SS. Biomechanics of pediatric brain injury: Work in progress. CNS Injury Conference, Philadelphia, PA, 2000.

Prange MT, Margulies SS. Large deformation material properties of white and gray matter. 3rd World Congress of Biomechanics, Sapporo, Japan, 1998.

Prange MT, Meany DF, Margulies SS. Directional properties of gray and white brain tissue undergoing large deformation. International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition, Anaheim, CA, 1998.

• Senior Research Scientist, Department of Biomedical Engineering at Duke University, 2002–2004
• Graduate Research Assistant, Injury Biomechanics Laboratory, Department of Bioengineering at the University of Pennsylvania, 1996–2001
  

• Society of Automotive Engineers (member) 
  – SAE World Congress, Biomechanics session chair, 2007–2010