tci General Surgery Coding Alert - 1999 Issue 2

Reader Question: Avoid Modifier -51 for multiple Endoscopies

Question: On a patient with anastomotic dehiscence, the surgeon performs a laparoscopic right colectomy, laparoscopic ileostomy, and laparoscopic jejunostomy. Code 56348 (laparoscopic intestinal resection) doesnt include an ileostomy and theres no separate code for laparoscopic ileostomies. How do I code for these three procedures when theyre performed as multiple procedures? Anonymous KY CoderAnswer: To complete the list of laparoscopic codes, there is also one for laparoscopic jejunostomy (56347) Ileostomy is the only one theres no code for, says Jacqueline Leopold, CPC, president of Practice Management Consulting Corp., in Highland Park, IL. The laparoscopic section always lags behind the other...

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