ABSTRACT
The purpose of this study was to determine biomechanical properties of linea alba subjected to transverse planar tension and to compare its behavior at different locations of the abdominal wall. Samples of linea alba from five different porcine abdominal walls were tested in planar tension. During these tests, strain maps were measured for the first time ever using the stereo-digital image correlation (S-DIC) technique. The strain maps were used to derive the properties of different hyperelastic material models. It was shown that the Ogden model and the Holzapfel-Gasser-Ogden model are appropriate to reproduce the response in planar tension. The linea alba located above the umbilicus was significantly more compliant than below the umbilicus. This difference which is reported for the first time here is consistent with the tissue microstructure and it is discussed within the perspective of clinically-relevant numerical simulations.
