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READER QUESTIONS: Consider Intervention With LAD

Question: How should I code an intervention on an ostial LAD?


Georgia Subscriber

Answer: The first thing you need to determine is what type of intervention the physician performed--for instance, stent placement, atherectomy, or balloon angioplasty.

For stent placement on the left anterior descending artery (LAD), you would report 92980-LD (Transcatheter placement of an intracoronary stent[s], percutaneous, with or without other therapeutic intervention, any method; single vessel; left anterior descending coronary artery). If the physician performed an atherectomy, you would report 92995-LD (Percutaneous transluminal coronary atherectomy, by mechanical or other method, with or without balloon angioplasty; single vessel; left anterior descending coronary artery). For a balloon angioplasty, you鈥檒l use 92982-LD (Percutaneous transluminal coronary balloon angioplasty; single vessel; left anterior descending coronary artery).

Choose wisely: You can choose only one of these codes to describe the intervention--so report the code that reflects the highest level of service.