Summary & Overview
CPT 33286: Cardiac Rhythm Monitor Explantation
CPT code 33286 denotes the surgical removal of a cardiac rhythm monitor from a subcutaneous tissue pocket. This code captures a discrete device explantation service that intersects cardiology, electrophysiology, and outpatient surgical care. Nationally, accurate coding of explantation procedures affects device registries, postoperative care workflows, and reimbursement for facilities and physician services.
Key payers covered include Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna Health, UnitedHealthcare, and Medicare. Readers will find a concise overview of clinical context for device removal, the typical sites of service where 33286 is performed, and the payer mix most commonly responsible for coverage decisions. The publication outlines coding benchmarks, common billing modifiers encountered with explantation procedures, and policy considerations that influence claims adjudication and authorization.
This summary equips clinicians, hospital billing teams, and policy analysts with the essential facts about CPT code 33286, clarifies where the procedure typically occurs, and highlights the payer landscape relevant to national billing and policy discussions. Data not available in the input for detailed benchmarks, associated taxonomies, and ICD-10 mappings.
Billing Code Overview
CPT code 33286 describes the removal of a cardiac rhythm monitor that has been implanted in a subcutaneous pocket beneath the patient’s skin. The procedure involves surgically accessing the tissue pocket, extracting the implanted monitoring device, and closing the site.
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Service type: Device explantation/removal
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Typical site of service: Ambulatory surgery center or hospital operating room (outpatient or inpatient settings may apply depending on clinical context)
Clinical & Coding Specifications
Clinical Context
A typical patient is an adult with an implanted subcutaneous cardiac rhythm monitor (implantable loop recorder) presenting for device removal after completion of diagnostic monitoring, battery depletion, device malfunction, or infection at the pocket site. The procedure is performed in an outpatient procedure room, ambulatory surgery center, or hospital minor operating room under local anesthesia with or without monitored anesthesia care. Workflow includes pre-procedure verification, review of device interrogation data, informed consent, sterile preparation of the insertion site, a small incision over the subcutaneous pocket, dissection to free and remove the monitor, inspection of the pocket for infection or retained fragments, hemostasis, layered closure of the incision, dressings, and post-procedure device interrogation and discharge instructions. Typical clinical indications include evaluation of unexplained syncope, recurrent palpitations, cryptogenic stroke evaluation, or monitoring for atrial fibrillation detection. Immediate post-procedure monitoring focuses on wound bleeding, pain control, and signs of infection; follow-up visits confirm incision healing and any required continued rhythm monitoring or alternative device planning.
Coding Specifications
| Modifier | Description | When to Use |
|---|---|---|
00 | Default/No modifier specified | General use when no other modifier applies |