tci General Surgery Coding Alert - 2002 Issue 5

Reader Question: Laparoscopic Liver Biopsy

Question: My surgeon did a diagnostic laparoscopy on the liver. He drained a cyst and did multiple liver biopsies. The pathology report showed adenocar-cinoma. Should I use 49321 or an unlisted-procedure code for laparoscopy in the liver section? North Dakota SubscriberAnswer: You should avoid unlisted-procedure codes whenever possible, so 49321 (Laparoscopy, surgical; with biopsy [single or multiple]) is probably a better choice. In this case, 49321 and 49322 (... with aspiration of cavity or cyst [e.g., ovarian cyst][single or multiple]) may be billed. However, because both codes are in the same laparoscopic group, the multiple-endoscopy rule applies and...

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