In this paper, a statistical reference-free real-time damage detection methodology is proposed for detecting joint and member damage of truss bridge structures. For the statistical damage sensitive index (DSI), wavelet packet decomposition (WPD) in conjunction with the log likelihood ratio was suggested. A sensitivity test for selecting a wavelet packet that is most sensitive to damage level was conducted and determination of the level of decomposition was also described. Advantages of the proposed method for applications to real-time health monitoring systems were demonstrated by using the log likelihood ratios instead of likelihood ratios. A laboratory truss bridge structure instrumented with accelerometers and a shaker was used for experimental verification tests of the proposed methodology. The statistical reference-free real-time damage detection algorithm was successfully implemented and verified by detecting three damage types frequently observed in truss bridge structures - such as loss of bolts, loosening of bolts at multiple locations, sectional loss of members - without reference signals from pristine structure. The DSI based on WPD and the log likelihood ratio showed consistent and reliable results under different damage scenarios.