Wiki Difficult surgery to code - asking for help

[tlm5506]

Hello.
I just came across a surgery from one of the surgeons I code for and I'm having a difficult time with it.
He did an open cholecystectomy with cholangiography. That part is not hard. Here is the hard part: he also did a transcystic balloon dilation of the distal common bile duct and sphincter. This was during the open procedure. I can find the code 47555, but that is for an endoscopy which he did not do.

Any help will be very much appreciated. Thanks.

 

[fscourtney]

difficult surgery

Hi....look at 47620.....see if that is any closer to what he did...

 

[tlm5506]

I did look at that code, actually, but what I am wondering is if the balloon dilation would count as a sphincteroplasty. He didn't make any incisions into the duodedum or the common bile duct.