CPT 29876: Arthroscopic Major Synovectomy of Knee
CPT code 29876 denotes arthroscopic major synovectomy of the knee, a minimally invasive surgical procedure to remove inflamed or damaged synovial tissue from two or more knee compartments. Nationally, this code is used to capture operative management of synovitis and related pathology that causes pain and restricted motion. Accurate coding for this procedure supports clinical documentation, appropriate claims processing, and quality measurement for orthopaedic surgical services.
This analysis covers major commercial payers and the Medicare program: Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna Health, UnitedHealthcare, and Medicare. Readers will find a concise clinical explanation, typical sites of service, expected indications, and coding relationships to common arthroscopic knee procedures. The publication also outlines commonly billed companion and related arthroscopy codes for context.
Healthcare administrators, coding professionals, and orthopaedic clinicians will learn how CPT code 29876 fits into surgical knee care, the typical clinical scenarios warranting a major synovectomy, and how it relates to other arthroscopic knee procedures. The content aims to clarify coding intent and clinical scope to support consistent billing and documentation practices across institutional and payer settings.
Customize your policy alerts
Sign up for cpt 29876 policy alerts
Get alerted when payer policies referencing 29876 are released or updated.
Monitor payer policy activity
Billing Code Overview
CPT code 29876 describes an arthroscopic major synovectomy of the knee. The procedure involves insertion of an arthroscope and instruments into the knee joint to inspect and excise inflamed or damaged synovial tissue from two or more compartments (including medial and/or lateral compartments) to relieve pain and improve range of motion.
Service Type: Arthroscopic knee surgical procedure — major synovectomy
Typical Site of Service: Hospital outpatient department or ambulatory surgery center, where operative arthroscopy with instrumentation is performed under appropriate anesthesia.
National Reimbursement Benchmarks
Medicare's mean rate of $627 sits notably below BUCA's average commercial mean of $2,414.90, showing that commercial arrangements captured by BUCA pay, on average, nearly four times Medicare for CPT 29876. That gap underscores a substantial differential between government reimbursement and the higher commercial-market mean represented by BUCA.
Dispersion measured by the interquartile range (P75–P25) varies meaningfully across payers. Blue Cross Blue Shield has the widest IQR at $2,747.30 (P75 $4,537.10 minus P25 $1,790.80), indicating large variability in contracted commercial rates. Aetna and UnitedHealth Group have moderate spreads of $643.50 and $730.90 respectively. Cigna is tighter with an IQR of $720.20, while BUCA’s IQR of $1,873.50 reflects substantial but smaller dispersion than BCBS. Medicare’s IQR is narrow at $56 (P75 $652 minus P25 $596).