Gastroenterology Coding Alert

Ask the right questions, and you shall have the answers.Do you want a headache-free search for a code to describe your enterostomy closure claim? You're one step ahead if you ask the question, "Did the surgeon also perform resection and anastomosis of the bowel?" You may be looking at some separately reportable services that can boost your reimbursement.Test Yourself with These ScenariosScenario 1: The GI surgeon performs coloproctostomy with colostomy (44146, Colectomy, partial; with coloproctostomy [low pelvic anastomosis], with colostomy) for a patient with colon cancer. Four months later, the surgeon closes the colostomy without bowel resection. What code should you report?Scenario 2: The GI surgeon performs a colostomy closure and resects a large segment of rectosigmoid before completing the anastomosis. He takes down the stoma and resects a small piece of bowel from it. He then goes down to the rectum/sigmoid, and resects a large piece of bowel, hooking [...]