Part 1:
36147: Grasp New Guidance for Diagnostic AV Shunt Coding
Published on Thu Feb 09, 2012
Watch for 2 separately reportable services.Flip through the Surgery section of your 2012 CPT® manual, and you'll find more than a page of new guidelines for arteriovenous (AV) shunts. Here are the highlights so you can properly apply the rules to your claims.Start here: The new guidelines help clarify proper reporting for 36147 (Introduction of needle and/or catheter, arteriovenous shunt created for dialysis [graft/fistula]; initial access with complete radiological evaluation of dialysis access, including fluoroscopy, image documentation and report [includes access of shunt, injection(s) of contrast, and all necessary imaging from the arterial anastomosis and adjacent artery through entire venous outflow including the inferior or superior vena cava]), explained Sean P. Roddy, MD, of the CPT® Advisory Committee and Society for Vascular Surgery, in his CPT® and RBRVS 2012 Annual Symposium presentation.The guidelines for AV shunts for dialysis feature one section for diagnostic studies and one section for interventions. This [...]