Orthopedic Coding Alert

Question: The orthopedic surgeon adjusted a misaligned halo vest under anesthesia. He later removed the painful halo vest and debrided pin sites for superficial pin site infection. How should we code these procedures? South Carolina Subscriber

Answer: You can report the halo adjustment with 20693 (Adjustment or revision of external fixation system requiring anesthesia [e.g., new pin{s} or wire{s} and/or new ring{s} or bar{s}]). If your surgeon doesn't believe 20693 is an accurate choice, submit 20999 (Unlisted procedure, musculoskeletal system, general) and compare to 20693 for RVU purposes (11.88 national RVUs for facility or non-facility).You can code the debridement separately with 11040 (Debridement; skin, partial thickness).