AHA Coding Clinic® for ICD-9 - 2006 Issue 4; VOLUME 3 NEW/REVISED CODES

Ablative Procedures

Effective October 1, 2006, new codes have been created to uniquely identify tumor ablation of lung (32.24-32.26), liver (50.23-50.26) and renal (55.32-55.35) lesions. Tumor ablation is an alternative to surgical removal of lesions. Ablation can be achieved using extreme heat, freezing (cryoablation), chemicals, focused ultrasound, microwaves or radiofrequency. ICD-9-CM procedure codes for ablation do not distinguish between the different energy sources used to ablate the tumor. Instead, the classification of ablation is arranged by the operative approach used, such as open, percutaneous, laparoscopic or thoracoscopic, and other and unspecified. Minimally invasive, image-guided ablation...

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