CPT 27179 Femoral Neck Osteotomy Reimbursement | OpenPayer

Summary & Overview

CPT 27179: Femoral Neck Osteotomy for Slipped Femoral Epiphysis

CPT code 27179 represents an open femoral neck osteotomy performed to correct a slipped femoral epiphysis in growing children by removing a wedge of bone to realign the femoral epiphysis. As a definitive orthopedic procedure for a pediatric growth-plate fracture, it carries implications for surgical planning, inpatient or ambulatory surgical facility resources, and postoperative rehabilitation. Nationally, accurate coding of this procedure supports appropriate resource allocation and clinical outcome tracking for pediatric hip disorders.

Key payers in this analysis include Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna Health, UnitedHealthcare, and Medicare. Readers will find an explanation of the clinical context and service delivery setting for CPT code 27179, typical sites of service, and the relevance of the code to billing workflows. The publication also summarizes common modifiers reported with complex orthopedic procedures and highlights items readers can expect in benchmarking and policy updates, such as utilization patterns, prior authorization trends, and coding guidance. Data not available in the input is noted where specific payer policies, associated taxonomies, ICD-10 pairings, and related codes are not provided.

AetnaBlue Cross Blue ShieldCigna HealthUnitedHealthcareMedicareCPT 27179femoral neck osteotomypediatric orthopedicsslipped femoral epiphysisorthopedic surgerysurgical codinghip deformity

Billing Code Overview

CPT code 27179 describes an open surgical osteotomy of the femoral neck to treat a slipped femoral epiphysis by removing a wedge-shaped portion of bone to realign the epiphysis and restore normal hip anatomy. The procedure addresses a displaced femoral head caused by fracture through the proximal femoral growth plate (physis) in growing children.

Service Type: Open orthopedic surgical procedure (osteotomy) for pediatric hip deformity

Typical Site of Service: Inpatient or outpatient surgical setting in a hospital operating room or ambulatory surgery center, depending on patient age, clinical complexity, and perioperative needs.

Clinical & Coding Specifications

Clinical Context

A 13-year-old obese male presents to the pediatric orthopedic clinic with several weeks of progressive left hip pain, an antalgic gait, and limited internal rotation. Radiographs demonstrate a moderate slipped capital femoral epiphysis (SCFE) with posterior and inferior displacement of the femoral epiphysis relative to the neck. After attempted closed reduction is not feasible or when there is concern for unstable slip, the patient is scheduled for open corrective femoral neck osteotomy (wedge resection) to realign the epiphysis and restore hip congruity.

The clinical workflow includes preoperative assessment (history, focused exam, imaging with AP and frog-leg lateral radiographs, and possible MRI if vascular compromise is suspected), informed consent with discussion of risks and potential need for fixation, operating room preparation with pediatric orthopedic team and anesthesia, performance of the open wedge resection of the femoral neck and realignment of the epiphysis, internal fixation as indicated, postoperative recovery with inpatient observation for pain and neurovascular status, and discharge planning with weight-bearing restrictions and outpatient follow-up for healing and growth plate surveillance.

Coding Specifications

Modifier	Description	When to Use
`00`	(Not a CMS standard modifier; when used per payor)	Data not available in the input.

11 | (Not a CMS global modifier in CMS list; commonly internal) | Data not available in the input.

CPT 27100: External Oblique Transfer to Greater Trochanter

CPT-27097-HAMSTRING-PROXIMAL-RELEASE

CPT 27097: Proximal Hamstring Release

CPT-27187-FEMORAL-NECK-PROXIMAL-FEMUR-FIXATION

CPT 27187: Femoral Neck and Proximal Femur Fixation

CPT-27176-PERCUTANEOUS-PINNING-SLIPPED-FEMORAL-EPIPHYSIS

CPT 27176: Percutaneous Pinning for Slipped Femoral Epiphysis

27132-CONVERSION-OF-PREVIOUS-HIP-SURGERY-TO-TOTAL-HIP

CPT 27132: Conversion to Total Hip Arthroplasty

CPT-27156-PELVIC-AND-FEMORAL-OSTEOTOMY-HIP-REDUCTION

CPT 27156: Pelvic and Femoral Osteotomy with Hip Reduction

CPT-27140-GREATER-TROCHANTER-OSTEOTOMY-TRANSFER

CPT 27140: Greater Trochanter Osteotomy and Transfer

CPT-27111-ILIOPSOAS-TRANSFER-FEMORAL-NECK-HIP-STABILITY

CPT 27111: Iliopsoas Transfer to Femoral Neck for Hip Stability

CPT-27147-PELVIC-OSTEOTOMY-WITH-HIP-REDUCTION

CPT 27147: Pelvic Osteotomy with Hip Reduction

CPT-27137-HIP-ACETABULAR-COMPONENT-REVISION

CPT 27137: Revision Hip Arthroplasty, Acetabular Component

Showing 1–10 of 30

Taxonomy Code	Specialty	Notes
`2080S0002X`	Orthopaedic Surgery (Pediatric)	Pediatric orthopedic surgeons most commonly perform `27179` for SCFE deformity correction.
`207X00000X`	Orthopaedic Surgery	General orthopaedic surgeons with pediatric or hip reconstruction experience perform corrective femoral neck osteotomies.
`207L00000X`	Orthopaedic Surgery of the Lower Extremity	Surgeons specialized in hip/lower extremity reconstruction perform complex femoral osteotomies.
`2086S0102X`	Orthopaedic Surgery of the Hip	Hip specialists who manage adolescent hip deformities may perform and code `27179`.

Related Diagnoses

ICD-10 Code	Description	Clinical Relevance
`M93.07`	Slipped upper femoral epiphysis, bilateral	Indicates SCFE; used when bilateral involvement exists and correlates directly with `27179` when bilateral procedures are performed.
`M93.06`	Slipped upper femoral epiphysis, left hip	Direct diagnosis for left-sided SCFE requiring open correction with `27179`.
`M93.05`	Slipped upper femoral epiphysis, right hip	Direct diagnosis for right-sided SCFE requiring open correction with `27179`.
`M84.45`	Pathological fracture, femur, lower end, subsequent encounter	Included when growth-plate fracture-related instability or pathological change contributes to surgical planning (used selectively).
`M24.56`	Recurrent dislocation and subluxation of hip	May be relevant when hip instability secondary to slipped epiphysis requires corrective osteotomy.

Related CPT Codes

CPT Code	Description	Relationship to This Procedure
`27235`	Open treatment of femoral fracture, proximal end, including internal fixation, when performed	May be used when reduction and fixation of proximal femoral fracture is performed instead of or in conjunction with osteotomy techniques.
`27370`	Closed treatment of femoral fracture; with manipulation, with or without skeletal traction	Performed prior to deciding on open corrective procedure when attempting closed reduction for SCFE.
`20680`	Removal of implant; deep (e.g., buried wires, pins, screws)	May be used for later removal of internal fixation hardware placed during `27179`.
`20936`	Autograft, tibial or iliac bone graft, or allograft, for spine or other bone grafting, when performed	Used if bone grafting is required to fill defects after wedge resection (less common but possible).
`77002`	Fluoroscopic guidance for needle placement (separate procedure)	Intraoperative imaging (fluoroscopy) supports reduction and fixation during the osteotomy and may be reported when applicable.

OpenPayer