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      The Role of Infrared Thermography as a Non-Invasive Tool for the Detection of Lameness in Cattle

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          Abstract

          The use of infrared thermography for the identification of lameness in cattle has increased in recent years largely because of its non-invasive properties, ease of automation and continued cost reductions. Thermography can be used to identify and determine thermal abnormalities in animals by characterizing an increase or decrease in the surface temperature of their skin. The variation in superficial thermal patterns resulting from changes in blood flow in particular can be used to detect inflammation or injury associated with conditions such as foot lesions. Thermography has been used not only as a diagnostic tool, but also to evaluate routine farm management. Since 2000, 14 peer reviewed papers which discuss the assessment of thermography to identify and manage lameness in cattle have been published. There was a large difference in thermography performance in these reported studies. However, thermography was demonstrated to have utility for the detection of contralateral temperature difference and maximum foot temperature on areas of interest. Also apparent in these publications was that a controlled environment is an important issue that should be considered before image scanning.

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          Most cited references43

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          A lameness scoring system that uses posture and gait to predict dairy cattle reproductive performance.

          Lameness has contributed to reproductive inefficiency and increased the risk of culling in dairy cows. We developed a 5-point lameness scoring system that assessed gait and placed a novel emphasis on back posture. Our objective was to determine if this system predicted future reproductive performance and the risk of culling. The study was conducted at a commercial dairy farm with a history of declining reproductive efficiency and an increasing prevalence of lameness. A total of 66 primipara and pluripara calved, received an initial lameness score, and completed their 60-d voluntary waiting period. The overall prevalence of lameness (mean lameness score >2) was 65.2%. Scoring continued at 4-wk intervals and ceased with conception or culling. The percentage of cows confirmed pregnant and culled was 77.3 and 22.7, respectively. For each reproductive endpoint, a 2 x 2 table was constructed with lameness score >2 as the positive risk factor and either performance greater than the endpoint mean or being culled as the positive disease or condition. Positive and negative predictive values, relative risk, Chisquare statistic and regression analysis were used to evaluate the data. The positive predictive values for days to first service, days open, breeding herd days, services per pregnancy and being culled were 58, 68, 65, 39 and 35%, respectively. Similarly, the negative predictive values were 79, 96, 100, 96 and 100%, respectively. Except for one reproductive endpoint, the total number of services, all linear regressions were significant at P 2 predicted that a cow would have extended intervals from calving to first service and to conception, spend or be assigned to (explained herein) more total days in the breeding herd, require more services per pregnancy and be 8.4 times more likely to be culled. We believe that this lameness scoring system effectively identifies lame cows. Observation of the arched-back posture in a standing cow (> or =LS 3) should trigger corrective interventions.
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            Effect of hoof pathologies on subjective assessments of dairy cow gait.

            To explore how hoof pathologies affect dairy cattle gait, we studied cows with sole hemorrhages (n = 14), sole ulcers (n = 7), and those with no visible injuries (n = 17). Overall gait assessments, scored from video using a 1 to 5 numerical rating system (1 = sound, 5 = severely lame) and a continuous 100-unit visual analog scale, found cows having sole ulcers had poorer gait than healthy cows (mean +/- SEM: 4.0 +/- 0.13 vs. 3.1 +/- 0.08, and 59 +/- 3 vs. 46 +/- 2, respectively). Six gait attributes (back arch, head bob, tracking-up, joint flexion, asymmetric gait, and reluctance to bear weight) were also assessed using continuous 100-unit scales. Compared with healthy cows, those having sole ulcers walked with a more pronounced back arch (12 +/- 3 vs. 28 +/- 4), more jerky head movement (2 +/- 2 vs. 10 +/- 3), shortened strides (7 +/- 2 vs. 26 +/- 4), and more uneven weighting among the limbs (16 +/- 2 vs. 32 +/- 3). Of all measures, the numerical rating system most effectively discriminated healthy cows from those with sole ulcers (R2 = 0.73), classifying 92% of animals correctly. No differences were detected among cows with and without sole hemorrhages. Intra- and interobserver reliabilities were reasonable for all measures (R2 > or = 0.64) except joint flexion and asymmetric gait. In summary, subjective assessments of dairy cattle gait provide valid and reliable approaches to identifying cattle with sole ulcers.
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              Epidemiology of lameness in dairy cattle: description and analysis of foot lesions.

              Information from 37 dairy farms, in four regions of England and Wales provided data on 8991 lesions and the preventive trimming of 4837 cows' feet. Of the total of 13,828 forms returned, veterinary surgeons treated 32 per cent and farmers or stockmen 46 per cent. Of the 8645 lesions associated with episodes of lameness, lesions in the hindlimbs accounted for 92 per cent, of which 65 per cent were in the outer claw, 20 per cent in the skin and 14 per cent in the inner claw. Sole ulcers (40 per cent) and white line lesions (29 per cent) were the predominant diseases of horn, and digital dermatitis (40 per cent) was the most common disease of the skin. Subjective assessments showed that sandcrack, penetration of the sole by foreign bodies and interdigital necrobacillosis were associated with the most severe cases of lameness. There was a significant seasonal effect in the reporting of lesions.
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                Author and article information

                Contributors
                Role: Academic Editor
                Journal
                Sensors (Basel)
                Sensors (Basel)
                sensors
                Sensors (Basel, Switzerland)
                MDPI
                1424-8220
                18 June 2015
                June 2015
                : 15
                : 6
                : 14513-14525
                Affiliations
                [1 ]Clinic for Ruminants, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Bern, Bern 3001, Switzerland; E-Mail: adrian.steiner@ 123456vetsuisse.unibe.ch
                [2 ]Agriculture Forestry Centre, Department of AFNS, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2P5, Canada; E-Mail: alschaef@ 123456telus.net
                [3 ]Livestock Technology Section, Institute for Agricultural Engineering, University of Bonn, Nussallee 5, Bonn D-53115, Germany; E-Mail: buescher@ 123456uni-bonn.de
                Author notes
                [* ]Author to whom correspondence should be addressed; E-Mail: maher.alsaaod@ 123456vetsuisse.unibe.ch ; Tel.: +41-31-631-2342; Fax: +41-31-631-2631.
                Article
                sensors-15-14513
                10.3390/s150614513
                4507600
                26094632
                49cd0149-d804-41b4-a609-25d54b0acc30
                © 2015 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.

                This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution license ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

                History
                : 11 May 2015
                : 12 June 2015
                Categories
                Review

                Biomedical engineering
                thermography,cattle,foot lesion,skin temperature,lameness
                Biomedical engineering
                thermography, cattle, foot lesion, skin temperature, lameness

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