Question

The patient is here because the cyst in her chest has come to a head and is still painful even though she has been on antibiotics for a week. I offered to drain it for her. After obtaining consent, we infiltrated the area with 1 cc of 1% lidocaine with epinephrine, prepped the area with Betadine and incised and opened the cyst in the relaxed skin tension lines of her chest, and removed the cystic material. There was no obvious purulence. We are going to have her clean this with a Q-tip. We will let it heal on its own and eventually excise it. I will have her come back a week from Tuesday to reschedule surgery. What CPT® and ICD-10-CM codes are reported?

Answer 1

The correct CPT would be 10060 and the reported ICD-10-CM codes are L72.9. The provider had perform an incision and drainage procedure for the cyst on the chest. In the CPT Index for Incision and Drainage/Cyst/Skin, 10060 and 10061 are for I & D of a cyst. However, only one cyst was drained making 10060 the correct code. Moreover, in the ICD-10-CM Alphabetic Index for Cyst/skin and you are referred to L72.9. 

 

Answer 2

Answer:

1. CPT Code 10060: Incision and drainage of abscesses (anthrax, suppurative hydradenitis, skin or subcutaneous abscess, cyst, boil or paronychia).

2.ICD L729: follicular cyst of the skin and subcutaneous tissue, unspecified: market size, prevalence, incidence, quality results, the best hospitals and doctors.

Explanation:

1.In the incision of the abscess and its drainage the skin is opened and the pus is drained. An abscess is defined as an accumulation of pus in a wound that becomes inflamed, hot, and swollen. It is produced by bacteria. An abscess requires opening and draining if it is delimited in soft tissues, such as in the thigh.

2. An epidermal cyst is a circular and firm lesion that is located intradermally or subcutaneously. It is the most frequent of cutaneous cysts. Their size ranges between 0.5 and 5 cm and they have an opening where the contents of the cyst can be drained.