Radiology Coding Alert

Question: Which CPT Code should we report for a unilateral lower-extremity arterial Doppler using multilevel segmental pressure recordings?

Florida Subscriber

Answer: The examination you describe is a non-imaging segmental pressure study using arterial Doppler. The only code for a multilevel Doppler arterial study is a bilateral code, 93923 (Non-invasive physiologic studies of upper or lower extremity arteries, multiple levels or with provocative functional maneuvers, complete bilateral study [e.g., segmental blood pressure measurements, segmental Doppler waveform analysis, segmental volume plethysmography, segmental transcutaneous oxygen tension measurements, measurements with postural provocative tests, measurements with reactive hyperemia]).

You should therefore report 93923-52 (Reduced services) for the unilateral study. Do not decrease your fee if you append modifier -52. The payer will determine whether any reimbursement reduction is necessary.

If you provide the professional service only, you should also append modifier -26 (Professional component) to 93923-52. If you only perform the technical component, you should append modifier -TC (Technical component) to 93923-52 instead.