Thilo Pfau
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Thilo is currently focusing on the use of traditional (3D optical motion capture and force platforms) and innovative (wireless sensor technology) techniques to detect and quantify movement anomalies in animals, in lameness in horses, cows and dogs and ataxia in horses and dogs.
Biography
Thilo graduated in Information Technology from the Technical University of Munich. He did a PhD in the field of pattern recognition at the Institute of Human-Machine Communication at Munich, followed by a two year postdoc at the International Institute of Computer Science, Berkeley, California. He then joined the Structure and Motion Lab at the RVC as a postdoctoral fellow and worked on BBSRC, HBLB and DEFRA funded projects investigating locmotion on compliant limbs, horse-surface interaction and automated lameness detection in dairy cattle.
In 2008 he became a Lecturer in Bio-Engineering in the Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences and is now focusing on applied locomotor biomechanics with an emphasis on objective quantification of movement anomalies. He is also working in a consultancy role at the Gait Lab at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital in Stanmore, where he is consulting on software development (MATLAB) for the data analysis of force plate and motion capture data in children with cerebral palsy.
Research
Thilo is interested in applied locomotor biomechanics, in particular the use of innovative assessment techniques for the assessment of over ground locomotion . He is currently -- together with his team of PhD students -- focusing on:
- automated lameness detection in dairy cattle
- use of sensor technology to quantify lameness during clinical lameness exams
- quantification of ataxia in dogs and horses
- visualization of horse movement using 3D computer animations.
In addition Thilo has a continued interest in the measurement of high-speed locomotion in race horses during routine exercise and the use of computer animations to visualize animal movement.
Teaching
Thilo is teaching on the MSc Veterinary Physiotherapy course (module leader biomechanics), on the BSc Bioveterinary Sciences 'Comparative Animal Locomotion' module and on the BVetMed 'Orthopaedic Elective Week'. He concentrates on teaching of applied locomotor biomechanics -- often making use of the great experimental facilities of the Structure and Motion Lab -- in lectures, practicals and seminars.
Clinical
Thilo is interested in the application of objective lameness quantification techniques in clinical lameness exams at the Equine Referral Hospital where he is also offering a clinical gait analysis service.
Selected Publications
WALKER, AM, PFAU, T, CHANNON, A, WILSON, A. (2010) Assessment of dairy cow locomotion in a commercial farm setting: the effects of walking speed on ground reaction forces and temporal and linear stride characteristics. Res Vet Sci. 88, 179-187. PubMed ID 19527912
PERKINS, J, RAFFETTO, J, THOMPSON, K, WELLER, R, PIERCY, R, PFAU, T (2009) “Three-dimensional biomechanics of simulated laryngeal abduction in horses”, AJVR, in press.
FERRARI, M, PFAU, T, WILSON, AM, WELLER, R.(2009) The effect of training on stride parameters in a cohort of National Hunt racing Thoroughbreds: a preliminary study. Equine Vet J. 41,493-497. PubMed ID 19642411
PFAU, T, SPENCE, A, STARKE, S, FERRARI, M, WILSON, A. (2009), Modern riding style improves horse racing times. Science. 17, 325, 289. PubMed ID 19608909
STARKE, SD, ROBILLIARD, JJ, WELLER, R, WILSON, AM, PFAU, T. (2009) Walk-run classification of symmetrical gaits in the horse: a multidimensional approach. J R Soc Interface. 6, 335-342. Epub 2008 Jul 29. PubMed ID 18664427
CHURCH, EE, WALKER, AM, WILSON, AM, PFAU, T. (2009) Evaluation of discriminant analysis based on dorsoventral symmetry indices to quantify hindlimb lameness during over ground locomotion in the horse. Equine Vet J. 41, 304-308. PubMed ID 19469241
CHANNON, AJ, WALKER, AM, PFAU, T, SHELDON, IM, WILSON, AM (2009) Variability of Manson and Leaver locomotion scores assigned to dairy cows by different observers. Vet Rec. 2009 Mar 28;164(13):388-92. PubMed ID 19329807
HESSE, KL, HINTERHOFER, C, PFAU, T. (2008) Sixth International Conference on Equine Locomotion. Equine Vet J. 40, 606-610. PubMed ID 19031518
PARKES, RS, WELLER, R, GROTH, AM, MAY, S, PFAU T. (2009) Evidence of the development of 'domain-restricted' expertise in the recognition of asymmetric motion characteristics of hindlimb lameness in the horse. Equine Vet J. 41,112-117. PubMed ID 19418737
PFAU, T., FERRARI, M., PARSONS, K. & WILSON, A. (2008) A hidden Markov model-based stride segmentation technique applied to equine inertial sensor trunk movement data. J Biomech 41, 216-220. PubMed ID 17897652
PARSONS, K. J., PFAU, T. & WILSON, A. M. (2008) High-speed gallop locomotion in the thoroughbred racehorse. I. The effect of incline on stride parameters. J Exp Biol 211, 935-944. PubMed ID 18310119
PARSONS, K. J., PFAU, T., FERRARI, M. & WILSON, A. M. (2008) High-speed gallop locomotion in the Thoroughbred racehorse. II. The effect of incline on centre of mass movement and mechanical energy fluctuation. J Exp Biol 211, 945-956. PubMed ID 18310120
WELLER, R., PFAU, T., FERRARI, M., GRIFFITH, R., BRADFORD, T. & WILSON, A. (2007) The determination of muscle volume with a freehand 3D ultrasonography system. Ultrasound Med Biol 33, 402-407. PubMed ID 17208353
ROBILLIARD, J. J., PFAU, T. & WILSON, A. M. (2007) Gait characterisation and classification in horses. J Exp Biol 210, 187-197. PubMed ID 17210956
PFAU, T., ROBILLIARD, J. J., WELLER, R., JESPERS, K., ELIASHAR, E. & WILSON, A. M. (2007) Assessment of mild hindlimb lameness during over ground locomotion using linear discriminant analysis of inertial sensor data. Equine Vet J 39, 407-413. PubMed ID 17910264
WELLER, R., PFAU, T., VERHEYEN, K., MAY, S. A. & WILSON, A. M. (2006) The effect of conformation on orthopaedic health and performance in a cohort of National Hunt racehorses: preliminary results. Equine Vet J 38, 622-627. PubMed ID 17228576
WELLER, R., PFAU, T., MAY, S. A. & WILSON, A. M. (2006) Variation in conformation in a cohort of National Hunt racehorses. Equine Vet J 38, 616-621. PubMed ID 17228575
WELLER, R., PFAU, T., BABBAGE, D., BRITTIN, E., MAY, S. A. & WILSON, A. M. (2006) Reliability of conformational measurements in the horse using a three-dimensional motion analysis system. Equine Vet J 38, 610-615. PubMed ID 17228574
PFAU, T., WITTE, T. H. & WILSON, A. M. (2006) Centre of mass movement and mechanical energy fluctuation during gallop locomotion in the Thoroughbred racehorse. J Exp Biol 209, 3742-3757. PubMed ID 16985191
FERRARI, M., WELLER, R., PFAU, T., PAYNE, R. C. & WILSON, A. M. (2006) A comparison of three-dimensional ultrasound, two-dimensional ultrasound and dissections for determination of lesion volume in tendons. Ultrasound Med Biol 32, 797-804. PubMed ID 16785002
PFAU, T., WITTE, T. H. & WILSON, A. M. (2005) A method for deriving displacement data during cyclical movement using an inertial sensor. J Exp Biol 208, 2503-2514. PubMed ID 15961737