Synthes Plate
Question: I have been unable to find a code for a level-one Synthes plate, anterior instrumentation. I have been advised to use 22845 with modifier -52 (reduced services). Is this correct?
Betsy OConnor
Bryn Mawr, Pa.
Neurosurgery Coding Alert
You Be the Coder:
Test your coding knowledge. Determine how you would code this situation before looking at the box below for the answer.
Answer: CPT code 22845 describes anterior instrumentation; 2-3 vertebral segments, says Rhonda Petruziello, CPC, reimbursement specialist for neurosurgery at Cleveland Clinic Foundation in Cleveland. The neurosurgeon likely placed the instrumentation over an interspace extending from one segment to another. If so, 22845 would be the correct code without attaching modifier -52 for reduced services.
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