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Anesthesia Coding Alert

Reader Questions:

What Is a Luschka Block?

Published on Sat Mar 01, 2003

Question: What is a Luschka block, and how should I code for it? Missouri Subscriber Answer: Physicians sometimes treat spinal pain with a Luschka block, but it is often a last resort for treatment because it involves permanent destruction of the nerve. This is the same as what many pain physicians call a median branch facet nerve block.                                                                                                 

 You should code it with 64470 (Injection, anesthetic agent and/or steroid, paravertebral facet joint or facet joint nerve; cervical or thoracic, single level) and +64472 ( cervical or thoracic, each additional level [list separately in addition to code for primary procedure]) for cervical/thoracic blocks. Use 64475 ( lumbar or sacral, single level) with +64476 ( lumbar or sacral, each additional level [list separately in addition to code for primary procedure]) for lumbar/sacral blocks.  
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