Radiology Coding Alert
Sinus CT Study Has Two Options
Question: I just read that if a screening sinus CT study is performed, two options exist for charging. One choice is to use the anatomic site-specific CPT code for the area studied with modifier -52 (Reduced services). The second choice is to submit the generic, non-site-specific code of 76380 (Computed tomography, limited or localized follow-up study). Please explain what this means. My coders are thinking that if the CT sinus exam doesn't read paranasal, then they should use 70486-52 (Computed tomography, maxillofacial area; without contrast material). Colorado Subscriber Answer: Your coding team is on the right track. The reason you want to continue using 70486-52 is that this sinus screening is not a complete maxillofacial CT. Therefore, use of modifier -52 is completely appropriate. If a nearly complete procedure is performed, use modifier -52. However, if you perform a scan of a limited area within a designated body section Editor's reminder: The verbiage for codes 76380 and 70486 has been changed in 2003. For both codes, "computerized axial tomography" now reads "computed tomography."
e.g., only doing a CT of the T11-T12 vertebral bodies
you should use 76380.
Radiology Coding Alert
- Bill US Mammogram After Clip Placement Once in a Blue Moon
" Confusion over the guidelines for coding mammograms following breast biopsies creates enough of a [...] - Radiopharmaceuticals Reimbursement Has Half a Life
Knowing when and how to report various HCPCS Level II or Level III codes is [...] - You Be the Coder:
Nephrostomy Replacement Tube
Test your coding knowledge. Determine how you would code this situation before looking at the [...] - G Code Changes Prostate Brachytherapy Pay Up
As Medicare continues to scale back payment for the time-intensive, complex work involved in prostate [...] - You Be the Coder:
Block Verification Is a Highly Audited Code
Test your coding knowledge. Determine how you would code this situation before looking at the [...] - 3-D Simulation Takes Radiation Oncology into Next Dimension
Radiation oncology coders working with practices that perform complex radiation treatments often wonder [...] - Correct Use of 77470 Ensures Pay Up of IORT
When treating a particularly difficult case of cancer with a multiservice regimen, the radiation oncologist [...] - Reader Question:
E/M Billing for Delayed Therapy Is Possible
Question: Our radiation oncologist sometimes sees patients for an initial E/M service either a new [...] - Reader Question:
Image Fusion Requires Multiple Codes
Question: Is there a single correct code to describe image fusion? Our office manager has [...] - Follow-Up to E/M Portion of IMRT
As radiation oncology coders continue to grapple with the complex, multistep coding required by intensity-modulated [...] - Reader Question:
Difference Between Cone-Down and Bending Views
Question: Can someone tell me what cone-down views are with regard to doing lumbar views? [...] - Reader Question:
Sinus CT Study Has Two Options
Question: I just read that if a screening sinus CT study is performed, two options [...] - Reader Question:
Adding -TC to Spot Films
Question: When a non-radiologist performs a procedure such as fluoroscopy that uses both radiology staff [...] - Reader Question:
How to Code a Cisternogram
Question: I've never coded a cisternogram before. The procedure notes say that the needle was [...]
