Patent ID: 6882880

Claim:
A system for detecting degeneration in mammalian cartilage by determining an impedance of the cartilage, said system comprising: a self contained surface probe having a plurality of excitation electrodes, said plurality of electrodes including a pair of excitation electrodes to provide contact with two surface points of the cartilage; a current source, operatively connected to said pair of excitation electrodes, to apply, through said pair of excitation electrodes, current to the cartilage; and a computing device, operatively connected to said pair of excitation electrodes, through which said current from said current source is applied to the cartilage, to measure an amplitude of a voltage drop between said pair of excitation electrodes, through which said current from said current source is applied to the cartilage, being induced by the application of said current and normalizing said measured amplitude to said applied current to determine said impedance of the cartilage.