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Neurosurgery Coding Alert

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Decortication for Dural Tear

Published on Tue Feb 08, 2011

Question: Would 63709 be appropriate for the decortication procedure below? Pre-op/Post-op Diagnosis:1. T12-L1 vertebral body fracture dislocation with paraplegia2. Cerebrospinal Fluid leak due to a dural tear Operation:3. EMG4. Fluoroscopy5. Wide decortications of the lamina and the transverse process from T9-L4 bilaterally.6. Bilateral pedicle screw from T9 to T11 bilaterally and from L2 to L4 bilaterally.7. Placement of rods8. Jackson-pratt drain9. Closure of the dura and the cerebrospinal fluid leak.10. Arthrodesis using allograft.Under general endotracheal anesthesia in the prone position on the Jackson table, the patient was placed. The prominent areas were padded. Exposure of the lamina from T9 to L4. When this was completed and exposure of the lamina and the transverse process was carried out from T9 to L4 bilaterally with a little bit of cerebrospinal fluid by dural tear at the level of the fracture at T12. The dura was closed with the muscle part with Tisseel [...]
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