Orthopedic Coding Alert
Report 62310-62311 for Single Epidurals
Question: Should we report 62318 or 62319 when the orthopedist percutaneously inserts a catheter to deliver anesthetic and steroid to the epidural interspace and he removes the catheter at the end of the session? Arizona Subscriber Answer: Because your physician inserts the catheter only to deliver medication for one-time use and removes the catheter after the drug delivery, you cannot report the continuous infusion codes 62318-62319 (these codes require indwelling catheter placement).
You should report 62310 (Injection, single [not via indwelling catheter], not including neurolytic substances, with or without contrast [for either localization or epidurography], of diagnostic or therapeutic substance[s] [including anesthetic, antispasmodic, opioid, steroid, other solution], epidural or subarachnoid; cervical or thoracic) or 62311 (... lumbar, sacral [caudal]), depending on whether the orthopedist addressed the cervical/thoracic (62310) or the lumbar/sacral (62311) interspaces.
Orthopedic Coding Alert
- Modifiers Can Make or Break Surgical X-Ray Claims
If you perform medically necessary x-rays before and after surgery for instance, to confirm implant [...] - Coding Case Study:
Report Only One E/M Code on Hospital Admit Date
Outpatient E/M visits sometimes uncover problems so severe that the orthopedist orders immediate emergency surgery. [...] - Modifier -57 At a Glance
For elective cases, orthopedists normally make surgical decisions days or weeks before the surgery, but [...] - NCCI Scopes New Knee Surgery Edits
Version 9.1 of the National Correct Coding Initiative (NCCI), which took effect April 1, bundles [...] - You Be the Coder:
Weaver-Dunn Procedure
Test your coding knowledge. Determine how you would code this situation before looking at the [...] - Reader Question:
Dont Report E/M for Warfarin Visit
Question: Our orthopedists often give patients warfarin following hip and knee replacement surgery. We usually [...] - Reader Question:
Append -53 Only With Anesthesia
Question: We were about to start anesthesia on a total knee replacement (27447) patient when [...] - Reader Question:
Tendon Injections Differ From TPIs
Question: What is the difference between the codes in the 20550-20553 series? I know the [...] - Reader Question:
Use -47 If Surgeon Performs Anesthesia
Question: I administered anesthesia to a patient before performing a bunionectomy and Chevron osteotomy. How [...] - Reader Question:
Report 62310-62311 for Single Epidurals
Question: Should we report 62318 or 62319 when the orthopedist percutaneously inserts a catheter to [...] - Reader Question:
Append -22 for TKA Conversion
Question: How should we report conversion of a total knee arthroplasty (TKA) for a patient [...] - Reader Question:
Report 99141 for Conscious Sedation
Question: We recently treated a dislocated shoulder while we had the patient under conscious sedation. [...] - Correction:
Graft Harvest/Insertion With 25447
The February 2003 Orthopedic Coding Alert article "Rule of Thumb: 25447 Includes Trapezium Excision" should [...]
