Validation of the Facial Ocular CountermeasUre for Safety (FOCUS) Headform for the Injury Risk Assessment of Less Lethal Impact Munitions

Injury patterns of various less-lethal impact munitions (LLIMs) including 40-mm sponge rounds and a 12-gauge drag-stabilized, bean bag round were collected. Relating real-world injury to forces measured by a biomechanical surrogate, the Facial and Ocular CountermeasUre for Safety (FOCUS) headform is investigated for its utility for future injury evaluation of LLIMs. An online search for cases of LLIM impacts to the head from May 15 to July 15, 2020, was conducted. A total of 107 cases were identified, and potential study subjects were sent a questionnaire with demographical, incidental, and experiential data collected. Ten (10) responses were obtained, leading to six (6) recreations using the FOCUS headform. Facial load cells measured forces ranging from 534 to 4364 N from which the risk of injury (ROI) was calculated. The abbreviated injury scale (AIS), maximum AIS (MAIS), and Injury Severity Scale (ISS) values were determined along with the head injury criterion (HIC) for all cases. For cases with eye injury, the Duma Eye Score (DES) was determined, and the probability of globe rupture was calculated. There is a high probability that an impact to the face from a LLIM can lead to soft tissue injuries, fractures, and even more severe injuries. As a preliminary study, there were a limited number of cases to study and high variability. Therefore, further testing including increased sample size and additional munitions is needed to better determine the sensitivity and specificity of the FOCUS headform to measure the risk of injuries from LLIMs.