Nixon Equine Thermography
Thermography is the digital imaging of a living animal or person with an infrared camera and the analysis, using computer software, of the infrared images (thermal maps). It is a physiological, non-invasive test performed using a hand-held thermal camera at a distance from the animal. It shows areas of both inflammation (usually hot) and nerve dysfunction (usually cold) or chronic lesions in the thermal colour patterns it produced.
Thermography helps the veterinarian localise the animal's problem area. This then enables further diagnostic procedures to be focused on the areas most likely to be responsible for causing the clinical signs. Thermography can be used for lameness evaluation, pre-purchase examinations and as a training aid.
Nixon Equine Veterinary Practice uses an Emerge Vision DTIS 500 thermal infrared camera, which can measure temperature differences as small as 0.08oC. The images are taken in a colour 'palate' of black, white and shades of grey. Arbitrary colour (depending on the palate selected) is added via the computer software to make temperature differences more obvious.
