Wiki bilateral knee xray

[richelle25]

Our provider does bilateral knee xrays quite often. When entering the read he is not stating each knee individually, but more stating results are normal or show arthritis. Does his read need to list each knee individually?

Thanks!

 

[fltbaroque]

Medical necessity needs to be met, so whatever it takes to make that clear. I think that if the diagnosis covers both knees, he can state "both knees show osteoarthritis" instead of stating them separately. If he has a diagnosis for only one knee, you may have a hard time showing medical necessity for the other knee, unless you have signs and symptoms, such as pain in both knees. If only one knee has a problem and he is just doing a comparison xray on the other knee, the comparison will probably not pay.