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Umbilical Reposition – 15830 vs. 15830 & 15847
Great question — An abdominoplasty (15847) involves significantly more work than a panniculectomy (15830) – work such as fascial and or muscle plication. Additionally, abdominoplasty is typically performed for cosmetic purposes.
When a surgeon repositions the umbilicus during a panniculectomy, that work is considered inherent to the procedure and is not separately reportable. Therefore, only 15830 should be billed in this scenario.
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Thyroid Procedure
A patient with a multinodular goiter causing compressive symptoms undergoes surgery. The surgeon removed both the right and left thyroid lobes, including the isthmus. During the procedure, the recurrent laryngeal nerves and parathyroid glands were identified and preserved. No neck dissection is performed. What CPT® code should be reported for this procedure?
Post-Op Visit Discussions
The surgeon performs a mastectomy. The patient returns for a post-op E&M within the global period, and the surgeon discusses the need for chemotherapy treatment with the patient. The surgeon will not be managing the chemotherapy. Can the surgeon submit an E&M with modifier 24?
Neurectomy and Amputations
Hello, Can you provide any guidance regarding the neurectomy and the code descriptions of 26951 and 26952. Are these required to be documented in traumatic cases where the nerves were already transected or where there is a revision being done encompassing all the other elements of the amputation, except vessel, ligation or neurectomy?
Cast Reapplication Conundrum
The patient initially presented with a wrist sprain and was treated with a short arm splint. Two days later, the patient returned due to the splint becoming wet or loose, and the physician removed and reapplied a new short arm splint. In this scenario, can the splint procedure be separately reported, or is it included in the E&M service?
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