CPT 01180: Anesthesia for Lower Leg, Ankle, and Foot Soft-Tissue Procedures - OpenPayer

Summary & Overview

CPT 01180: Anesthesia for Lower Leg, Ankle, and Foot Soft-Tissue Procedures

Headline: CPT code 01180 defined for anesthesia for lower-leg and foot soft-tissue procedures

CPT code 01180 denotes anesthesia for procedures on nerves, muscles, tendons, fascia, and bursae of the lower leg, ankle, and foot that are not otherwise specified. This code captures anesthesia services associated with soft-tissue interventions in the lower extremity and is relevant to anesthesiologists, perioperative teams, and payers managing surgical case mixes. Nationally, clear coding supports appropriate payment and clinical documentation for regional and general anesthetic management of foot and ankle procedures.

Key payers covered in this analysis include Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna Health, UnitedHealthcare, and Medicare. Readers will find clinical context for when this anesthesia code applies, common related surgical procedures, and the coding relationships that affect billing. The publication outlines typical sites of service (operating room, ambulatory surgical center, and other procedural settings), associated ICD-10 diagnoses commonly billed with this service, and related anesthesia and surgical codes for lower leg and foot procedures.

This summary provides a concise reference for clinicians, coding professionals, and payers seeking to understand the role of CPT code 01180 in perioperative documentation and claims processing. Data not available in the input is noted where applicable.

AetnaBlue Cross Blue ShieldCigna HealthUnitedHealthcareMedicare01180CPTanesthesialower-extremityfoot-and-ankleperioperativeregional-anesthesiaoperative-codingsoft-tissue-procedures

Billing Code Overview

CPT code 01180 describes anesthesia for procedures on nerves, muscles, tendons, fascia, and bursae of the lower leg, ankle, and foot; not otherwise specified. The service is an anesthesia service provided during surgical or procedural interventions targeting soft tissues of the lower leg, ankle, and foot.

Typical site of service for CPT code 01180 is the operating room, ambulatory surgical center, or other procedural setting where regional or general anesthesia for lower extremity soft-tissue procedures is administered. The service involves anesthetic management tailored to procedures on nerves, muscles, tendons, fascia, and bursae in the lower leg, ankle, and foot.

Clinical & Coding Specifications

Clinical Context

A 46-year-old patient presents to an outpatient ambulatory surgery center with chronic right midfoot pain and metatarsalgia unresponsive to conservative care. Diagnostic evaluation including clinical exam and imaging localizes pain to the metatarsal head and surrounding soft tissues. The orthopedic surgeon schedules a targeted soft-tissue procedure on the plantar fascia and surrounding bursae of the right foot under anesthesia. Anesthesia services are billed using 01180 for anesthesia directed to nerves, muscles, tendons, fascia, and bursae of the lower leg, ankle, and foot. Typical workflow: preoperative evaluation and consent in pre-op holding; regional block (e.g., popliteal or ankle block) or monitored anesthesia care per anesthesiology plan; intraoperative anesthesia management during the soft-tissue procedure; immediate post-anesthesia recovery in PACU with discharge to same-day observation or home when stable. Typical site of service is an ambulatory surgery center or hospital outpatient department. The service is performed by a qualified anesthesiologist or certified registered nurse anesthetist with documentation of preoperative assessment, intraoperative anesthetic record, and postoperative recovery notes.

Coding Specifications

Modifier	Description	When to Use
`AA`	Anesthesia services performed personally by anesthesiologist	Use when the physician anesthesiologist personally performs the anesthesia.

CPT 01112: Anesthesia for Bone Marrow Aspiration/Biopsy at Iliac Crest

00942

CPT 00942: Anesthesia for Vaginal and Associated Procedures

cpt-01150-anesthesia-radical-pelvic-tumor-procedure

CPT 01150: Anesthesia for Radical Pelvic Tumor Procedures

cpt-00948-anesthesia-for-cervical-cerclage

CPT 00948: Anesthesia for Cervical Cerclage

cpt-00940-anesthesia-female-perineum-biopsy

CPT 00940: Anesthesia for Female Perineum Procedures

cpt-01140-interpelviabdominal-amputation-anesthesia

CPT 01140: Anesthesia for Interpelviabdominal Amputation

00938

CPT 00938: Anesthesia for Vasectomy Procedures

cpt-00918-anesthesia-for-ureteral-stone-fragmentation-removal

CPT 00918: Anesthesia for Ureteral Stone Fragmentation/Removal

cpt-00906-anesthesia-for-vulvectomy

CPT 00906: Anesthesia for Vulvectomy

cpt-01120-anesthesia-for-pelvic-bony-procedures

CPT 01120: Anesthesia for Procedures on the Bony Pelvis

Showing 1–10 of 71

Taxonomy Code	Specialty	Notes
`207L00000X`	Anesthesiology	Primary specialty providing anesthesia services for lower leg/ankle/foot procedures.
`207LA0401X`	Pain Medicine (Anesthesiology)	Applicable when regional nerve blocks or perioperative pain management techniques are performed by pain-trained anesthesiologists.
`207LP2900X`	Pediatric Anesthesiology	Applicable when the procedure is performed in pediatric patients requiring anesthesiology services.

Related Diagnoses

ICD-10 Code	Description	Clinical Relevance
`M25.571`	Pain in right ankle and joints of right foot	Directly supports anesthesia for diagnostic or therapeutic soft-tissue procedures addressing ankle and foot joint pain on the right.
`M25.572`	Pain in left ankle and joints of left foot	Supports procedures on the left ankle/foot soft tissues requiring anesthesia.
`M79.671`	Pain in right foot	General right foot pain diagnosis that may indicate need for targeted soft-tissue procedures under `01180`.
`M79.672`	Pain in left foot	General left foot pain supporting anesthesia for left-sided soft-tissue interventions.
`M77.41`	Metatarsalgia, right foot	Localized forefoot pain often leading to procedures on tendons, fascia, or bursae of the foot billed with `01180`.

Related CPT Codes

CPT Code	Description	Relationship to This Procedure
`01480`	Anesthesia for open procedures on bones of lower leg, ankle, and foot	Used when anesthesia is required for open bony procedures involving the lower leg, ankle, or foot; alternative anesthesia code for more invasive bone procedures.
`01490`	Anesthesia for closed procedures on bones of lower leg, ankle, and foot	Used for anesthesia when closed fracture management or closed reductions of the lower leg/ankle/foot are performed.
`20680`	Removal of implant; deep	May be performed in the same operative episode when deep implant removal involves soft tissues and requires anesthesia for lower leg/ankle/foot.
`27650`	Repair, primary, open or percutaneous, of ruptured Achilles tendon	Used when anesthesia is provided for operative repair of an Achilles tendon rupture; relates as a more extensive tendon procedure requiring specific anesthesia coding.

OpenPayer