tci General Surgery Coding Alert - 2006 Issue 6

READER QUESTIONS: Pass the Splenic Flexure, Report Colonoscopy

Question: Our doctor attempted a colonoscopy with decompression. He passed the splenic flexure and saw stool in the transverse colon. However, he never got past the transverse colon and did not see the ascending colon. Is this an incomplete colonoscopy (45378-53) or a sigmoid-oscopy with decompression (45337)?Pennsylvania Subscriber Answer: If your physician intended to do a complete colonoscopy (the patient was prepped for a colonoscopy, he used a standard colonoscope and medicated the patient for a colonoscopy) and the documentation is clear that he passed the splenic flexure, you may report a complete colonoscopy using 45378 (Colonoscopy, flexible...

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.