CPT 01170: Anesthesia for Open Symphysis Pubis or Sacroiliac Joint Procedures
CPT code 01170 represents anesthesia services delivered for open surgical procedures involving the symphysis pubis or sacroiliac joint. This code is used by anesthesiologists and perioperative teams to document and bill for anesthesia care specific to open pelvic or sacroiliac joint surgeries. Nationally, accurate use of this code supports appropriate classification of perioperative resource use and aligns anesthesia reporting with the surgical complexity of pelvic and sacroiliac procedures.
Key payers covered in this analysis include Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna Health, UnitedHealthcare, and Medicare. The publication provides readers with clinical context for the code, common coding relationships, and the types of procedures and sites of service associated with 01170.
Readers will learn the clinical scope of the code, where it is typically reported (hospital operating rooms and ambulatory surgical centers), and how it connects to related surgical services. The report also situates 01170 within anesthesia service reporting practices and highlights relevant benchmarking and policy considerations for national payers. Data not provided in the input is identified as unavailable.
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Billing Code Overview
CPT code 01170 describes anesthesia services provided for patients undergoing open surgical procedures involving the symphysis pubis or sacroiliac joint. The code applies to the anesthesia service associated with these open pelvic or lumbopelvic joint operations.
Service type: Anesthesia for open procedures of the symphysis pubis or sacroiliac joint
Typical site of service: Hospital operating room or ambulatory surgical center (inpatient or outpatient surgical setting)
Clinical & Coding Specifications
Clinical Context
A 56-year-old patient presents for elective open surgical stabilization of the pubic symphysis after a pelvic ring injury sustained in a motor vehicle collision. The orthopedic team plans an open reduction and internal fixation of the symphysis pubis with possible sacroiliac joint fixation. Pre‑operative evaluation is completed by the anesthesia team, including medical history, airway assessment, and review of comorbidities. On the day of surgery the anesthesiology provider administers general endotracheal anesthesia with intraoperative hemodynamic management, invasive monitoring as needed, and postoperative anesthetic care in the recovery area until the patient meets discharge criteria from the post‑anesthesia care unit. The anesthesia service documented includes preoperative evaluation, induction, maintenance, and emergence care for an open procedure involving the symphysis pubis and/or sacroiliac joint as described by 01170.
Coding Specifications
| Modifier | Description | When to Use |
|---|---|---|
22 | Increased procedural services | Use when anesthesia care required substantially greater work than typically required for 01170 (document rationale). |
23 | Unusual anesthesia | Use when general anesthesia is medically necessary for a procedure that is normally performed with local/regional anesthesia. |
50 | Bilateral procedure | Use when symmetric bilateral open procedures on both sides of the pelvis/sacroiliac joints are performed and anesthesia documentation supports bilateral service. |
52 | Reduced services | Use when the anesthesia service is partially reduced or less than described for 01170 (document extent). |
53 | Discontinued procedure | Use when anesthesia was initiated but the procedure was terminated for reasons outside the control of the physician. |
54 | Surgical care only | Use when the anesthesiologist provides intraoperative management only and another provider furnishes pre/postoperative anesthesia care. |
55 | Postoperative management only | Use when the anesthesiologist provides only postoperative pain management after another provider provided intraoperative anesthesia. |
62 | Two surgeons | Use when co‑surgeons are required for the open pelvic/sacroiliac procedure and anesthesia documentation reflects complexity related to multiple surgeons. |
78 | Unplanned return to the operating/procedure room for a related procedure by the same physician following initial procedure | Use when patient returns to OR for a complication related to the index open symphysis/sacroiliac procedure requiring repeat anesthesia. |
AA | Anesthesia services performed personally by anesthesiologist | Use when the named anesthesiologist personally performs the anesthesia service for 01170. |
AD | Medical supervision by a physician; more than four concurrent anesthesia procedures | Use when the physician supervises multiple concurrent anesthesia practitioners and meets criteria for AD. |
AS | Physician assistant, nurse practitioner, or clinical nurse specialist service for anesthesia | Use when a qualified non‑physician anesthesia provider delivers the anesthesia service under appropriate supervision. |
QK | Medical direction of two, three, or four concurrent anesthesia procedures involving qualified individuals | Use when the physician medically directs multiple concurrent CRNAs providing anesthesia for 01170. |
QS | Monitored anesthesia care service | Use when monitored anesthesia care is billed instead of general anesthesia and the documented care meets MAC criteria for the procedure. |
| Taxonomy Code | Specialty | Notes |
|---|---|---|
207L00000X | Anesthesiology | Primary specialty performing perioperative anesthesia for open pelvic/sacroiliac procedures. |
207LA0401X | Pain Medicine (Anesthesiology) | May provide perioperative or postoperative regional analgesia (eg, neuraxial or peripheral nerve blocks) adjunctive to 01170. |
207LP2900X | Pediatric Anesthesiology | Applies when the patient is a pediatric case requiring specialized anesthetic management for pelvic/sacroiliac surgery. |
Related Diagnoses
| ICD-10 Code | Description | Clinical Relevance |
|---|---|---|
M25.521 | Pain in right elbow | Provided in the input; not typically related to pelvic/sacroiliac anesthesia but present in dataset as a concurrent musculoskeletal pain diagnosis. |
M25.522 | Pain in left elbow | Provided in the input; represents an upper‑extremity pain diagnosis listed in the dataset but not directly related to 01170. |
M75.121 | Incomplete rotator cuff tear or rupture of right shoulder | Provided in the input; an upper‑extremity surgical diagnosis included in the dataset but not clinically linked to open pubic symphysis/sacroiliac procedures. |
M75.122 | Incomplete rotator cuff tear or rupture of left shoulder | Provided in the input; represents a shoulder diagnosis included in the dataset without direct relevance to pelvic fixation anesthesia. |
M77.11 | Lateral epicondylitis, right elbow | Provided in the input; listed among musculoskeletal diagnoses in the dataset but not directly relevant to anesthetic management for 01170. |
Related CPT Codes
| CPT Code | Description | Relationship to This Procedure |
|---|---|---|
20610 | Arthrocentesis, aspiration and/or injection; major joint or bursa | May be performed preoperatively or postoperatively for diagnostic aspiration or intraoperative joint management unrelated to open fixation but billed when performed. |
24357 | Tendon repair, elbow | Not directly related to pelvic procedures; listed as related in the dataset but typically used for upper‑extremity tendon repair procedures performed by orthopedics. |
24359 | Tendon transfer, elbow | Not directly related to pelvic/sacroiliac surgery; included as a related orthopedic elbow procedure in the dataset. |
24360 | Repair of ruptured tendon, elbow | Not directly related to 01170; represents additional orthopedic procedures that may appear in provider panels but are unrelated to open symphysis pubis/sacroiliac anesthesia services. |