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CPT 44132: Donor Small Intestine Resection and Cold Preservation

CPT code 44132 captures an open surgical resection of a small intestine segment from a cadaver donor with immediate cold preservation for transplantation. This code documents the donor-side procurement procedure that enables intestinal transplantation, a specialized and resource-intensive component of organ transplant programs. Nationally, accurate coding for donor organ recovery affects transplant supply chain tracking, hospital billing for procurement services, and coordination with organ procurement organizations.

Key payers in this analysis include Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna Health, UnitedHealthcare, and Medicare. Readers will find a concise overview of the clinical context for CPT code 44132, typical sites of service, commonly associated modifiers, and expected billing considerations. The publication outlines benchmarks and reimbursement patterns where available, summarizes policy updates relevant to transplant procurement coding, and provides operational context for hospital billing teams and transplant program administrators.

This summary serves clinicians, charge masters, and revenue cycle professionals who need a clear, national-level reference for documenting and classifying cadaveric small-bowel procurement and preservation procedures.

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Billing Code Overview

CPT code 44132 describes an open resection of a segment of small intestine procured from a cadaver and preserved on ice and in cold preservation solution for transplantation into a recipient. This procedure involves the surgical removal of a donor small-bowel segment with immediate preservation to maintain tissue viability for subsequent transplant.

Service type: Organ procurement and preservation for transplantation
Typical site of service: Operating room / hospital inpatient surgical suite

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CPT 44132: Donor Small Intestine Resection and Cold Preservation

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Billing Code Overview

Service type: Organ procurement and preservation for transplantation
Typical site of service: Operating room / hospital inpatient surgical suite

Clinical & Coding Specifications

Clinical Context

A typical patient scenario involves a deceased organ donor undergoing multi-organ recovery in an operating room at an organ procurement organization or transplant center. The on-call transplant surgeon performs an open resection of a segment of small intestine intended for transplantation into a recipient. The donor is hemodynamically managed by the recovery team, and organ viability is assessed prior to procurement. The resected intestinal segment is flushed with and preserved in cold preservation solution and stored on ice for transport to the recipient center. Documentation includes donor consent/authorization, donor identification, organ-specific intraoperative findings (vascular anatomy, ischemia time), preservation solution used, cold ischemia start time, surgical technique, personnel present, and chain-of-custody for the recovered organ. Typical site of service is an operating room in a hospital or designated procurement facility. The service type is surgical organ procurement for transplantation.

Coding Specifications

Modifier	Description	When to Use
`00`	No modifier (placeholder)	Used when no specific CMS modifier applies to the claim.
`22`	Increased procedural services	When work, time, or technical difficulty substantially exceeds the usual service for the same CPT code.
`26`	Professional component	If only the professional component of a combined service is billed (rare for procurement procedures).
`50`	Bilateral procedure	If bilateral paired-organ procurement billing conventions apply (not typical for small intestine alone).
`52`	Reduced services	When the procedure is partially reduced or not completed as planned.
`53`	Discontinued procedure	When the procedure is terminated due to extenuating circumstances.
`54`	Surgical care only	When only the surgical portion is billed and pre/post-operative care is billed separately.
`55`	Postoperative management only	When only postoperative care is billed by a different provider.
`62`	Two surgeons	When two surgeons work together as primary surgeons during the procurement.
`66`	Surgical team	When a formally organized surgical team performs the procedure.
`73`	Discontinued outpatient procedure prior to anesthesia	If procedure cancelled after patient preparation but before anesthesia induction.
`78`	Return to the operating/procedure room for a related procedure during the postoperative period	If an unplanned return to OR related to the procurement is required.
`80`	Assistant surgeon	When an assistant surgeon performs assistive technical services.
`AS`	Physician assistant, nurse practitioner, or clinical nurse specialist services for assistant at surgery	When an eligible non-physician practitioner serves as an assistant at surgery.

Taxonomy Code	Specialty	Notes
2080P0206X	Transplant Surgeon	Surgeons specializing in abdominal organ transplantation and procurement.
208000000X	General Surgery	General/acute care surgeons who participate in organ recovery teams.
208000000X-T2	Trauma Surgery (or Acute Care Surgery)	Surgeons experienced in complex retrievals in urgent settings.
208600000X	Surgery, Colon & Rectal	May participate when intestinal anatomy or pathology requires subspecialty input.
2084P0800X	Surgical Critical Care	Providers involved in donor management and perioperative critical care.

Related Diagnoses

ICD-10 Code	Description	Clinical Relevance
Data not available in the input.	Data not available in the input.	Data not available in the input.

Related CPT Codes

CPT Code	Description	Relationship to This Procedure
`49720`	Donor hepatectomy, including cold preservation for transplant	Often performed during multi-organ recovery with coordinated timing and shared preservation logistics.
`48550`	Intestinal resection and anastomosis, small intestine; single resection and anastomosis	Represents therapeutic resection in recipients or donor anatomy reference; not a procurement-specific code but related anatomic procedure.
`38206`	Blood-derived hematopoietic progenitor cell harvesting for transplantation; marrow aspiration from donor	Example of another donor procurement procedure performed in transplant workflows (different tissue type) and billing conventions.
`50300`	Donor nephrectomy, open, including cold preservation for transplant	Common concurrent organ procurement procedure that shares operative team and transport coordination.
`00562`	Anesthesia for open abdominal procedures for organ retrieval or transplant	Anesthesia services commonly billed in conjunction with open organ procurement procedures.

CPT 44100: Small Intestine Biopsy via Oral Capsule

CPT-44110-OPEN-EXCISION-INTESTINAL-LESION-SINGLE-INCISION

CPT 44110: Open Excision of Intestinal Lesion(s), Single Incision

CPT-44111-INTESTINAL-LESION-EXCISION-MULTIPLE-INCISIONS

CPT 44111: Excision of Intestinal Lesions, Multiple Incisions

CPT-44120-SMALL-INTESTINE-RESECTION-PRIMARY-ANASTOMOSIS

CPT 44120: Small Intestine Resection with Primary Anastomosis

CPT-44121-ADDITIONAL-SMALL-INTESTINE-RESECTION-ANASTOMOSIS

CPT 44121: Additional Small Intestine Resection with Anastomosis

CPT-44125-SMALL-INTESTINE-RESECTION-WITH-STOMA-CREATION

CPT 44125: Small Intestine Resection with Stoma Creation

CPT-44126-SMALL-BOWEL-RESECTION-CONGENITAL-ATRESIA-END-TO-END-ANASTOMOSIS

CPT 44126: Small Bowel Resection for Congenital Atresia with End-to-End Anastomosis

CPT-44127-SMALL-BOWEL-RESECTION-ANASTOMOSIS-INTESTINAL-ATRESIA

CPT 44127: Small-Bowel Resection with Anastomosis for Intestinal Atresia

CPT-44128-SMALL-BOWEL-RESECTION-ANASTOMOSIS-CONGENITAL-ATRESIA

CPT 44128: Small Bowel Resection and Anastomosis for Congenital Atresia

CPT-44130-INTESTINAL-ANASTOMOSIS-BOWEL-RESECTION-ANASTOMOSIS

CPT 44130: Intestinal Anastomosis, With or Without Stoma

Showing 1–10 of 29

Frequently Asked Questions

References

1.CPT® Codes and Descriptions. AAPC. Retrieved Jul 29, 2026.
2.HCPCS Quarterly Update. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Retrieved Jul 29, 2026.
3.ICD-10-CM Full Code List. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Retrieved Jul 29, 2026.

Published by

Trek Health powers OpenPayer with a leading commercial payer intelligence platform, seamlessly converting fragmented payer data into actionable insights for provider organizations.

Trek Health ingests and normalizes Transparency in Coverage data and payer policy updates to give provider organizations a clear view of how commercial reimbursement behaves across markets, payers, and services. Our platform transforms raw payer disclosures into structured intelligence that supports contract evaluation, payer negotiations, and service line strategy. By combining market benchmarks with ongoing policy visibility, Trek helps teams identify variability, risk, and opportunity in commercial reimbursement. The result is faster insight, stronger negotiating positions, and more informed financial decisions.

Clinical & Coding Specifications

Clinical Context

Coding Specifications

Modifier	Description	When to Use
`00`	No modifier (placeholder)	Used when no specific CMS modifier applies to the claim.
`22`	Increased procedural services	When work, time, or technical difficulty substantially exceeds the usual service for the same CPT code.
`26`	Professional component	If only the professional component of a combined service is billed (rare for procurement procedures).
`50`	Bilateral procedure	If bilateral paired-organ procurement billing conventions apply (not typical for small intestine alone).
`52`	Reduced services	When the procedure is partially reduced or not completed as planned.
`53`	Discontinued procedure	When the procedure is terminated due to extenuating circumstances.
`54`	Surgical care only	When only the surgical portion is billed and pre/post-operative care is billed separately.
`55`	Postoperative management only	When only postoperative care is billed by a different provider.
`62`	Two surgeons	When two surgeons work together as primary surgeons during the procurement.
`66`	Surgical team	When a formally organized surgical team performs the procedure.
`73`	Discontinued outpatient procedure prior to anesthesia	If procedure cancelled after patient preparation but before anesthesia induction.
`78`	Return to the operating/procedure room for a related procedure during the postoperative period	If an unplanned return to OR related to the procurement is required.
`80`	Assistant surgeon	When an assistant surgeon performs assistive technical services.
`AS`	Physician assistant, nurse practitioner, or clinical nurse specialist services for assistant at surgery	When an eligible non-physician practitioner serves as an assistant at surgery.

Taxonomy Code	Specialty	Notes
2080P0206X	Transplant Surgeon	Surgeons specializing in abdominal organ transplantation and procurement.
208000000X	General Surgery	General/acute care surgeons who participate in organ recovery teams.
208000000X-T2	Trauma Surgery (or Acute Care Surgery)	Surgeons experienced in complex retrievals in urgent settings.
208600000X	Surgery, Colon & Rectal	May participate when intestinal anatomy or pathology requires subspecialty input.
2084P0800X	Surgical Critical Care	Providers involved in donor management and perioperative critical care.

Related Diagnoses

ICD-10 Code	Description	Clinical Relevance
Data not available in the input.	Data not available in the input.	Data not available in the input.

Related CPT Codes

CPT Code	Description	Relationship to This Procedure
`49720`	Donor hepatectomy, including cold preservation for transplant	Often performed during multi-organ recovery with coordinated timing and shared preservation logistics.
`48550`	Intestinal resection and anastomosis, small intestine; single resection and anastomosis	Represents therapeutic resection in recipients or donor anatomy reference; not a procurement-specific code but related anatomic procedure.
`38206`	Blood-derived hematopoietic progenitor cell harvesting for transplantation; marrow aspiration from donor	Example of another donor procurement procedure performed in transplant workflows (different tissue type) and billing conventions.
`50300`	Donor nephrectomy, open, including cold preservation for transplant	Common concurrent organ procurement procedure that shares operative team and transport coordination.
`00562`	Anesthesia for open abdominal procedures for organ retrieval or transplant	Anesthesia services commonly billed in conjunction with open organ procurement procedures.

CPT 44100: Small Intestine Biopsy via Oral Capsule

CPT-44110-OPEN-EXCISION-INTESTINAL-LESION-SINGLE-INCISION

CPT 44110: Open Excision of Intestinal Lesion(s), Single Incision

CPT-44111-INTESTINAL-LESION-EXCISION-MULTIPLE-INCISIONS

CPT 44111: Excision of Intestinal Lesions, Multiple Incisions

CPT-44120-SMALL-INTESTINE-RESECTION-PRIMARY-ANASTOMOSIS

CPT 44120: Small Intestine Resection with Primary Anastomosis

CPT-44121-ADDITIONAL-SMALL-INTESTINE-RESECTION-ANASTOMOSIS

CPT 44121: Additional Small Intestine Resection with Anastomosis

CPT-44125-SMALL-INTESTINE-RESECTION-WITH-STOMA-CREATION

CPT 44125: Small Intestine Resection with Stoma Creation

CPT-44126-SMALL-BOWEL-RESECTION-CONGENITAL-ATRESIA-END-TO-END-ANASTOMOSIS

CPT 44126: Small Bowel Resection for Congenital Atresia with End-to-End Anastomosis

CPT-44127-SMALL-BOWEL-RESECTION-ANASTOMOSIS-INTESTINAL-ATRESIA

CPT 44127: Small-Bowel Resection with Anastomosis for Intestinal Atresia

CPT-44128-SMALL-BOWEL-RESECTION-ANASTOMOSIS-CONGENITAL-ATRESIA

CPT 44128: Small Bowel Resection and Anastomosis for Congenital Atresia

CPT-44130-INTESTINAL-ANASTOMOSIS-BOWEL-RESECTION-ANASTOMOSIS

CPT 44130: Intestinal Anastomosis, With or Without Stoma

Showing 1–10 of 29

Frequently Asked Questions

References

1.CPT® Codes and Descriptions. AAPC. Retrieved Jul 29, 2026.
2.HCPCS Quarterly Update. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Retrieved Jul 29, 2026.
3.ICD-10-CM Full Code List. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Retrieved Jul 29, 2026.

Published by

Trek Health powers OpenPayer with a leading commercial payer intelligence platform, seamlessly converting fragmented payer data into actionable insights for provider organizations.

OpenPayer

CPT 44132: Donor Small Intestine Resection and Cold Preservation

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Billing Code Overview

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OpenPayer

CPT 44132: Donor Small Intestine Resection and Cold Preservation

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Billing Code Overview

Clinical & Coding Specifications

Clinical Context

Coding Specifications

Related Diagnoses

Related CPT Codes

Related Codes

References

Clinical & Coding Specifications

Clinical Context

Coding Specifications

Related Diagnoses

Related CPT Codes

Related Codes

References

CPT 44132: Donor Small Intestine Resection and Cold Preservation

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Billing Code Overview

CPT 44132: Donor Small Intestine Resection and Cold Preservation

Sign up for cpt 44132 policy alerts

Billing Code Overview

Clinical & Coding Specifications

Clinical Context

Coding Specifications

Related Diagnoses

Related CPT Codes

Related Codes

What clinical service does CPT 44132 represent and where is it typically performed?

Which modifiers might be used with CPT 44132 and when would they apply?

Which provider specialties or taxonomies are associated with performing this procedure?

What other CPT codes are commonly related to or encountered alongside CPT 44132?

What documentation should be included when billing for CPT 44132?

References

Clinical & Coding Specifications

Clinical Context

Coding Specifications

Related Diagnoses

Related CPT Codes

Related Codes

What clinical service does CPT 44132 represent and where is it typically performed?

Which modifiers might be used with CPT 44132 and when would they apply?

Which provider specialties or taxonomies are associated with performing this procedure?

What other CPT codes are commonly related to or encountered alongside CPT 44132?

What documentation should be included when billing for CPT 44132?

References