Outpatient Facility Coding Alert

You Be the Coder:

Know How to Wrap the Wound

Published on Tue Apr 14, 2015

Question: A patient was seen for wound care of a stage-2 for both her right heel and left shin x 2. Can we use the wound care code 97602 with modifier 50?

Oklahoma Subscriber

Answer: Before selecting the procedure code, verify whether the physician performed debridement with surgical instruments.

For example, you can use CPT® code 97602 (Removal of devitalized tissue from wound[s], non-selective debridement, without anesthesia [e.g., wet-to-moist dressings, enzymatic, abrasion], including topical application[s], wound assessment, and instruction[s] for ongoing care, per session) for removal of devitalized tissue from wounds when the physician performs non-selective debridement (chemical method, hydrogen peroxide, iodine, Pulsed lavage method etc.).

CPT(R) codes from the wound debridement series (11042 - 11047) can be used if the provider completes active debridement with surgical instruments (forceps and scissors to remove infected or dead tissue material from the wound).

The code selection also depends on the depth of the wound and the amount of tissue removed. Also, for multiple wounds, sum the surface area of those wounds, that are at the same depth, but we do not combine sums for different depths.

Final note: Remember that you cannot bill modifier 50 (Bilateral procedure) with 97602.