Pathology/Lab Coding Alert
Watch for Microscopy Procedure with Lung Biopsy
Question: Our pathologist evaluated lung biopsy slides stained with toluidine blue using CTEM. How should we code this? Oklahoma Subscriber Answer: Because the pathologist is using electron microscopy to help diagnose a lung biopsy specimen, you should report 88348 (Electron microscopy, diagnostic). The process you referred to is conventional transmission electron microscopy, or CTEM. You should not separately bill for the toluidine blue, because that is the standard stain for CTEM, not a special stain. CTEM passes electrons through extremely-thin, stained sections of the specimen to create a high-resolution image by scattering and absorbing electrons. Pathologists may use this method to help evaluate lung conditions such as asbestosis, a lung disease caused by inhaling fibers of the mineral asbestos.
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