Cardiology Coding Alert

Question: Our doctor circled V45.81 (status post bypass) on our superbill for a patient with a fem-pop bypass. Is this the right code?

Oklahoma Subscriber

Answer: You should report V45.89 (Other postprocedural status; other) for status post femoral popliteal surgery (also called fem-pop or femoropopliteal).

Code V45.81 (... aortocoronary bypass status) is specific to "aortocoronary bypass," which is another term for coronary artery bypass graft (CABG). CABG treats coronary artery disease by bypassing the coronary artery's blocked portion with a piece from another blood vessel.

Femoral popliteal bypass treats femoral artery disease by bypassing a blockage in the femoral artery. The graft is sewn onto both the femoral and popliteal arteries, both of which are in the leg and are peripheral vessels.

The V45.8x category doesn't offer a particular code for femoral popliteal status, so you should use "other" code V45.89.