tci General Surgery Coding Alert - 2016 Issue 2

Reader Question: Distinguish Hydrocele and Hernia Procedures

Question: If the surgeon repairs a reducible inguinal hernia and also excises a hydrocele at the same encounter, how should we code the case? Texas Subscriber Answer: The answer depends on the patient age. For a child younger than five years, you should report just one code for both procedures: 49500 (Repair initial inguinal hernia, age 6 months to younger than 5 years, with or without hydrocelectomy; reducible). But for a patient five years or older, you can report two codes for the two procedures, as follows: 49505 — Repair initial inguinal hernia, age 5 years or older; reducible...

To read the full article, sign in and subscribe to tci General Surgery Coding Alert.


Leverage vital, to-the-point monthly guidance to boost your reporting accuracy and your coding know-how. We make it convenient for your team to stay informed, compliant, and profitable with a subscription to TCI’s General Surgery Coding Alert.

  • Current newsletters added each month
  • Fully searchable archives - over 2100 articles
  • ALL years/issues back to 1999 organized by year and issue
  • Codes mentioned in articles are linked to Code Information pages
  • Code Information pages link back to related articles
Access to this feature is available in the following products:
  • tci General Surgery Coding Alert +Archives

demo
request yours today
 subscribe
start today
 newsletter
free subscription

Thank you for choosing Find-A-Code, please Sign In to remove ads.