Editor's Note: This article by Paul Cadorette, director of education for mdStrategies, originally appeared in The Coding Advocate, mdStrategies free monthly newsletter. Sign-up to receive this newsletter by clicking here.
CPT copyright 2008 American Medical Association. All rights reserved. CPT is a registered trademark of the American Medical Association.
PRP (platelet rich plasma) or ACP (autologus conditioned plasma) is the same process wherein blood would be drawn from the patient intra-operatively and then processed so that the platelet rich plasma can be injected into the operative wound or to treat areas of tendonitis/fasciitis. The medical effectiveness of this procedure is still highly debated and many carriers consider PRP injections investigational and/or experimental.
PRP is used by some physicians in the treatment of plantar fasciitis by injecting the plasma into the affected area so that “growth factors” contained in the PRP can react with the tissue, stimulating a healing response. The popular CPT code for reporting this service is 20550.
Effective July 1, there will be a new Category III for reporting PRP/ACP injections.
0232T – Injection(s), platelet rich plasma, any tissue, including image guidance, harvesting and preparation, when performed.
This code represents single or multiple injections into any site (plantar fasciitis, medial epicondylitis) — fluoroscopic guidance or any other imaging service is included, along with harvesting and preparation of the blood, which we previously reported as 86999 (Unlisted transfusion procedure) per CPT Assistant instructions.
The parenthetical notes for this code indicate that 20550, 20551, 20926, 76942, 77002, 77012, 77021 or 86965 should not be reported in conjunction with 0232T.
Click here (pdf) for a link to a complete list of Category III codes that become effective July 1.
Other recent coding stories from Paul Cadorette:
- The "BELIEVE IT OR NOT" with Pain Management Coding
- Use of New Facet Injection Codes for 2010
- Partial Mastectomy or Lumpectomy with Axillary Lymphadenectomy
CPT copyright 2008 American Medical Association. All rights reserved. CPT is a registered trademark of the American Medical Association.
PRP (platelet rich plasma) or ACP (autologus conditioned plasma) is the same process wherein blood would be drawn from the patient intra-operatively and then processed so that the platelet rich plasma can be injected into the operative wound or to treat areas of tendonitis/fasciitis. The medical effectiveness of this procedure is still highly debated and many carriers consider PRP injections investigational and/or experimental.
PRP is used by some physicians in the treatment of plantar fasciitis by injecting the plasma into the affected area so that “growth factors” contained in the PRP can react with the tissue, stimulating a healing response. The popular CPT code for reporting this service is 20550.
Effective July 1, there will be a new Category III for reporting PRP/ACP injections.
0232T – Injection(s), platelet rich plasma, any tissue, including image guidance, harvesting and preparation, when performed.
This code represents single or multiple injections into any site (plantar fasciitis, medial epicondylitis) — fluoroscopic guidance or any other imaging service is included, along with harvesting and preparation of the blood, which we previously reported as 86999 (Unlisted transfusion procedure) per CPT Assistant instructions.
The parenthetical notes for this code indicate that 20550, 20551, 20926, 76942, 77002, 77012, 77021 or 86965 should not be reported in conjunction with 0232T.
Click here (pdf) for a link to a complete list of Category III codes that become effective July 1.
Other recent coding stories from Paul Cadorette:
- The "BELIEVE IT OR NOT" with Pain Management Coding
- Use of New Facet Injection Codes for 2010
- Partial Mastectomy or Lumpectomy with Axillary Lymphadenectomy