Primary Care Coding Alert

Question: Using electrocautery, I removed lesions from a patient's cervix. Should I use 57061 or does a specific cervix lesion removal code exist?

Georgia Subscriber

Answer: Because you are destroying cervical, not vaginal, lesions, 57061 (Destruction of vaginal lesion[s];simple [e.g., laser surgery, electrosurgery, cryosurgery,chemosurgery) is inappropriate. You should instead use 57510 (Cautery of cervix; electro or thermal).

For cyrocautery, use 57511 (- cryocautery, initial or repeat). Report cautery by laser ablation as 57513.

What it is: Cervical cautery is usually performed for minor pre-cancerous changes on the cervix or to reduce troublesome discharge or bleeding from a cervical ectropion,an erosion that results when the delicate glandular (columnar) cells are exposed on the cervix's surface. A patient may require cervical electro or thermo cautery (57510) when cervicitis (616.0) does not respond to antibiotics, or when she has cervical dysplasia (622.1x).