Summary & Overview
CPT 29914: Arthroscopic Hip Surgery with Femoroplasty to Treat Cam Lesion
CPT code 29914 represents arthroscopic hip surgery with femoroplasty to correct a cam lesion causing femoroacetabular impingement. This procedure restores the spherical shape of the femoral head to reduce painful impingement and improve joint mechanics, and it is commonly performed in active patients and athletes. The code is nationally relevant due to the prevalence of hip impingement diagnoses among younger, active populations and the increasing use of arthroscopic techniques in outpatient surgical settings.
Key payers examined include Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna Health, UnitedHealthcare, and Medicare. Readers will find clinical context for the procedure, typical sites of service, and which commercial and federal payers commonly cover arthroscopic femoroplasty. The publication provides benchmarks for utilization and reimbursement patterns where available, highlights policy considerations that affect prior authorization and outpatient surgical coding, and outlines documentation elements that typically support medical necessity for this service.
This summary equips clinicians, billing staff, and policy analysts with a concise reference to the clinical intent of CPT code 29914, the payer landscape relevant to hip arthroscopy, and the types of information payers often require for claims adjudication and coverage decisions.
Billing Code Overview
CPT code 29914 describes an arthroscopic surgical procedure on the hip that includes a femoroplasty to correct a cam lesion. The procedure reshapes the femoral head to restore a more spherical contour and relieve femoroacetabular impingement, a source of joint friction and pain commonly seen in athletes.
Service type: Surgical — Orthopedic, Arthroscopic Hip Surgery
Typical site of service: Hospital outpatient department or ambulatory surgery center, performed in an operating room or procedure suite equipped for arthroscopy.
Clinical & Coding Specifications
Clinical Context
A 26-year-old competitive soccer player presents with persistent right-sided groin pain, mechanical clicking, and limited hip flexion after conservative care including activity modification, physical therapy, and intra-articular corticosteroid injection provided limited relief. Imaging with plain radiographs and magnetic resonance arthrography demonstrates a cam-type femoroacetabular impingement with a prominent anterolateral femoral head–neck junction (cam lesion) and associated chondrolabral irritation. The orthopedic surgeon schedules arthroscopic hip surgery with femoroplasty to reshape the femoral head–neck junction and address labral pathology as indicated.
Preoperative workflow includes preauthorization with the patient’s insurer, perioperative medical clearance, regional or general anesthesia planning, and documentation of symptoms, failed conservative measures, and imaging findings. Intraoperative steps include portal placement, diagnostic arthroscopy of the hip joint, identification of the cam lesion, arthroscopic femoroplasty (burring/reshaping the femoral head–neck junction), and treatment of concurrent intra-articular pathology (for example, labral repair or debridement) as indicated. Postoperative workflow includes recovery from anesthesia, pain management, physical therapy initiation with weight-bearing and range-of-motion instructions, and follow-up imaging and clinic visits to document improvement and healing.
Coding Specifications
| Modifier | Description | When to Use |
|---|---|---|
00 | Service not recognized by local payer as a valid procedure code |