CDT D1110: Prophylaxis - Adult; Cleaning and Polishing of the Teeth
Headline: CDT code D1110: Adult Prophylaxis — routine professional teeth cleaning
Lead: CDT code D1110 covers professional adult prophylaxis — cleaning and polishing of the teeth — a common preventive dental procedure with broad national relevance for routine oral health maintenance and preventive care access.
What the code represents and why it matters: CDT code D1110 denotes an established preventive dental service aimed at removing plaque, calculus, and extrinsic stains to reduce risk of caries and periodontal disease. Nationally, this service is a frequent entry point for preventive dental benefit utilization and influences care patterns, utilization management, and preventive coverage policies across payers.
Key payers covered: The analysis includes major national payers: Aetna; Blue Cross Blue Shield; Cigna Health; Medicare; and UnitedHealthcare. These payers collectively shape coverage norms and patient cost-sharing for routine dental prophylaxis.
Overview of reader takeaways: Readers will find a concise clinical and billing description of CDT code D1110, comparisons to related preventive dental services, payer coverage context, common coding considerations, and typical sites of service. The content summarizes clinical intent, common diagnostic associations, and related codes that practitioners and billing professionals use alongside D1110.
Scope note: Data not available in the input for service-line metadata beyond what is stated.
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Billing Code Overview
CDT code D1110 represents prophylaxis for adults, specifically the professional service of cleaning and polishing the teeth. The procedure is delivered within the field of dentistry and is typically performed in a dental office (POS 11). This service focuses on removal of plaque, calculus, and stains to maintain oral health and prevent disease.
National Reimbursement Benchmarks
National mean rates show a clear gap between Medicare and the BUCA (average commercial) benchmark: Medicare has no localities reported in the input, so Data not available in the input., while BUCA (average commercial) reports a mean of $49.56. Among commercial payers, UnitedHealthcare ($68.51) and Blue Cross Blue Shield ($60.71) sit above the BUCA mean, while Aetna ($40.65) and Cigna Health ($36.58) sit below it.
Dispersion measured as P75 minus P25 varies across payers. UnitedHealthcare has a relatively tight spread (75.13 - 62 = $13.13), Cigna Health is also tight (41 - 33 = $8.00), while Blue Cross Blue Shield shows a wider spread (71 - 46 = $25.00). Aetna's spread is $12.00 and BUCA's spread is $26.20. The table and chart below present the full breakdown.