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Abstract

This continuation-in-part patent application follows the original parent patent application which described a general method of denervation of the nerves in and around the intervertebral disc to relieve back pain using heating from a probe which is inserted within the intervertebral disc. The probe in the original application can be connected to a power source to deliver energy to the disc, thereby heating the disc and denervating the nerves associated with the disc, with consequent relief of various kinds of discogenic pain. This continuation-in-part illustrates other embodiments of the invention described in the parent patent application. In particular, it describes other embodiments of heating methods to denervate the disc, as well as thermal cooling or cryogenic methods to denervate the disc. These methods can be either percutaneous or carried out during open interoperative intervention of the disc. Furthermore, we describe in this continuation-in-part an embodiment of the impedance-detecting probes and shafts which were generically described in the parent patent application. The impedance measuring method and devices can help in ascertaining when the thermal probe is in the proper position within the intervertebral disc to make the thermal lesion.

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First Claim