Clinical Context
A 52-year-old ambulatory patient with symptomatic varicose veins presents to an outpatient vascular clinic. After duplex ultrasound confirms an incompetent saphenous vein with reflux and correlated symptoms (pain, swelling, cosmetic concern, or recurrent superficial thrombophlebitis), the patient is scheduled for endovenous closure using a proprietary cyanoacrylate chemical adhesive delivered via catheter. The procedure is performed under local anesthesia with ultrasound guidance in an ambulatory surgery center or office-based procedure room. The provider accesses the incompetent vein percutaneously, advances the catheter to the target segment, injects the adhesive to ablate the first treated vein, and performs post-procedure ultrasound to confirm closure. Typical workflow includes pre-procedure verification, informed consent, sterile preparation, ultrasound-guided catheter insertion, adhesive delivery to the first vein (report 36482), hemostasis, brief recovery, and discharge with post-procedure instructions and follow-up duplex imaging.
Coding Specifications
| Modifier | Description | When to Use |
|---|
00 | No modifier; standard reporting | Use when no additional modifier applies to the service. |
| 11 | Normally expected physician or practitioner service | Use to report the professional component when applicable (rare for this full procedure code but used by some payors to denote routine service).
| 22 | Increased procedural services | Use when substantially greater work than typical is documented (requires supporting documentation).
| 50 | Bilateral procedure | Use when the same procedure is performed bilaterally and the payer accepts this modifier for bilateral reporting.
| 52 | Reduced services | Use when the procedure is partially reduced or not completed as planned (document reason).
| 53 | Discontinued procedure | Use when the procedure is terminated due to extenuating circumstances after anesthesia/sterile prep.
| 59 | Distinct procedural service | Use when another distinct procedure or service is performed in a separate anatomical site or session on the same date and documentation supports distinctness.
| 62 | Two surgeons | Use when two surgeons work together as primary surgeons performing distinct portions of the procedure.
| 76 | Repeat procedure by same physician | Not in provided list; omitted.
| LT | Left side | Use to indicate the left extremity was treated when payor requires side modifiers.
Associated provider taxonomies
| Taxonomy Code | Specialty | Notes |
|---|
2080P0207X | Vascular Surgery | Common specialty performing venous ablation procedures. |
| 207XS0105X | Interventional Radiology | Frequently performs ultrasound-guided endovenous adhesive ablation.
| 207K00000X | General Surgery | General surgeons with vascular practice may perform the procedure.
| 208D00000X | Dermatology (Venous Management) | Dermatologic surgeons or vein specialists who perform sclerotherapy and adhesive ablation.
| 207L00000X | Cardiovascular Disease | Cardiology specialists with venous intervention expertise may perform endovenous procedures.
Related Diagnoses
| ICD-10 Code | Description | Clinical Relevance |
|---|
I83.90 | Varicose veins of lower extremities with unspecified complications, unspecified lower extremity | Common indication for endovenous adhesive ablation when varicose veins cause symptoms. |
| I83.10 | Varicose veins of right lower extremity with pain | Indicates symptomatic varicosity of the right leg; supports medical necessity for ablation.
| I83.11 | Varicose veins of left lower extremity with pain | Indicates symptomatic varicosity of the left leg; supports medical necessity for ablation.
| I83.813 | Varicose veins of bilateral lower extremities with inflammation | Reflects bilateral disease with inflammatory complication; may require treatment of multiple veins.
| I83.90 | Varicose veins of lower extremities without complication | Frequently used when varicose veins are present as the primary diagnosis for ablation.
Related CPT Codes
| CPT Code | Description | Relationship to This Procedure |
|---|
36482 | Cyanoacrylate adhesive ablation, first vein treated | Primary code for chemical adhesive endovenous ablation of the first incompetent vein in an extremity. |
| 36483 | Cyanoacrylate adhesive ablation, each additional vein (List separately in addition to code for primary vein) | Reported for each additional vein treated during the same session after 36482.
| 76937 | Ultrasound guidance for vascular access requiring imaging documentation | Used when ultrasound guidance is reported separately for vascular access placement during the procedure if payer allows separate reporting.
| 93970 | Duplex scan of extremity veins, noninvasive, complete bilateral study | Pre- or post-procedure diagnostic duplex ultrasound to evaluate venous reflux and confirm closure; typically performed before and/or after the ablation.
| 36465 | Endovenous laser ablation of incompetent vein, extremity; using thermal energy (e.g., laser) | Alternative endovenous ablation technique; listed for clinical context when thermal ablation is used instead of adhesive ablation.