Patent ID: 8543221

Claim:
An external system to detect an implanted lead coupled to an implanted neurostimulation device (INSD), the system comprising: a handheld probe having electrodes configured to be positioned external to a surface of a patient and proximate to a region of the patient having the implanted lead for an INSD, the electrodes configured to measure a stimulation output from the implanted lead of the INSD; a controller coupled to the electrodes to receive measured signals from the electrodes, the measured signals representative of the stimulation output of the INSD, the controller processing the measured signals to obtain lead information; an amplifier that compares the measured signals to obtain a difference signal, the difference signal increasing as the electrodes move closer to a source of the stimulation output; and a user interface to present the lead information to a user, the lead information indicative of at least one of an operation of the lead and a position of the lead.