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General Surgery Coding Alert

You Be the Coder:

Distinguish Lesion ‘Excision’ and ‘Destruction’ Codes

Published on Wed May 17, 2023

Question: The op report identifies a 1.5 cm basal cell carcinoma diagnosed by prior biopsy that the surgeon “removed.” I’m unclear if the removal is by destruction or excision. How should I code this? Arkansas Subscriber Answer: When the op report describes “removal,” of a specific size lesion, the procedure is an excision. Difference: Excision and destruction are two different approaches to [...]
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