CPT 49062 Extraperitoneal Drainage Reimbursement | OpenPayer

Summary & Overview

CPT 49062: Extraperitoneal Lymphatic Fluid Drainage

CPT code 49062 denotes a surgical incision to drain an extraperitoneal collection of lymphatic fluid, typically arising after trauma or extensive abdominal surgery. The procedure addresses an enlarging, symptomatic fluid collection by opening tissues to permit drainage into the peritoneal cavity, reducing pain and infection risk. Nationally, this code captures an acute surgical management approach for a recognized postoperative and post-traumatic complication and is relevant to surgical services, hospital utilization, and inpatient procedural reporting.

Key payers included in this analysis are Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna Health, UnitedHealthcare, and Medicare. Readers will find a concise clinical context for use of the code, guidance on typical sites of service and service type, and an overview of common billing modifiers associated with procedural reporting. The publication summarizes benchmarking considerations and policy-relevant points affecting hospital and surgical billing workflows, and it outlines the clinical scenarios in which CPT code 49062 is most commonly reported.

This summary is intended for national audiences including hospital billing managers, surgical departments, and health policy analysts who need a clear reference for clinical application and payer coverage considerations tied to this surgical drainage procedure. Data not available in the input is noted where relevant.

AetnaBlue Cross Blue ShieldCigna HealthUnitedHealthcareMedicare49062CPTsurgical drainageextraperitonealabdominal surgeryprocedural codinghospital servicespostoperative complication

Billing Code Overview

CPT code 49062 describes a surgical procedure in which the provider makes an incision in the abdominal wall to drain a localized collection of lymphatic fluid located in the extraperitoneal space. This procedure relieves pain and reduces infection risk by allowing trapped lymph fluid to escape into the peritoneal cavity for natural resorption or further management.

Service type: Surgical drainage of extraperitoneal lymphatic collection.
Typical site of service: Inpatient or outpatient surgical setting, commonly performed in an operating room or procedure suite depending on clinical stability and complexity.

Clinical & Coding Specifications

Clinical Context

A typical patient is an adult who presents after major abdominal trauma or extensive abdominal surgery with a progressively enlarging, tense, and painful fluid collection in the abdominal wall or the extraperitoneal space. The patient may report abdominal fullness, localized tenderness, wound drainage, low-grade fever, or difficulty with mobility. Imaging (ultrasound or CT) demonstrates a localized collection consistent with lymphatic or seroma fluid in the extraperitoneal/retroperitoneal or preperitoneal space. Conservative measures (compression, needle aspiration) have failed or are not feasible due to size, location, or recurrent accumulation.

The clinical workflow includes preoperative evaluation and informed consent, relevant laboratory studies, and imaging review. In the operating room or procedural suite under monitored anesthesia care or general anesthesia, the surgeon makes an abdominal incision over the collection, dissects to the extraperitoneal space, drains the lymphatic/seroma fluid, and creates a tract or opening to allow continuous drainage into the peritoneal cavity or places appropriate drains. Intraoperative documentation should describe findings, estimated fluid amount and character, procedures performed (incision, drainage, creation of communication to the peritoneal cavity), anesthesia type, and any complications. Postoperative care includes wound and drain management, infection monitoring, and follow-up imaging as indicated.

Coding Specifications

Modifier	Description	When to Use
`11`

CPT 49040: Incision and Drainage of Subdiaphragmatic Abscess

CPT-49082-ABDOMINAL-PARACENTESIS-WITHOUT-IMAGING

CPT 49082: Abdominal Paracentesis Without Imaging

CPT-49002-EXPLORATORY-REOPENING-OF-ABDOMINAL-INCISION

CPT 49002: Reopening of Abdominal Incision for Exploration

CPT-49014-PELVIC-CAVITY-REOPENING-AND-REMOVAL-OF-PACKING

CPT 49014: Reopening Pelvic Cavity and Removal of Preperitoneal Packing

CPT-49000-INTRA-ABDOMINAL-EXPLORATION-WITH-BIOPSY

CPT 49000: Intra-Abdominal Exploration with Biopsy

CPT-49084-PERITONEAL-LAVAGE-DIAGNOSTIC-WASHOUT

CPT 49084: Diagnostic Peritoneal Lavage to Detect Internal Bleeding

CPT-49020-OPEN-INCISION-DRAINAGE-INTRA-ABDOMINAL-ABSCESS

CPT 49020: Open Incision and Drainage of Intra‑abdominal Abscess

CPT-49083-IMAGE-GUIDED-ABDOMINAL-PARACENTESIS

CPT 49083: Image-Guided Abdominal Paracentesis

CPT-49013-PELVIC-PREPERITONEAL-PACKING-FOR-HEMORRHAGE-CONTROL

CPT 49013: Preperitoneal Pelvic Packing for Hemorrhage Control

CPT-49010-RETROPERITONEAL-EXPLORATION-WITH-BIOPSY

CPT 49010: Retroperitoneal Exploration with Biopsy

Showing 1–10 of 11

Taxonomy Code	Specialty	Notes
208100000X	General Surgery	Most common specialty performing evacuation of extraperitoneal/lymphatic fluid collections.
2080P0906X	Trauma Surgery	Frequently involved when collections follow traumatic injury.
207L00000X	Vascular Surgery	May be involved when lymphatic injury or complex retroperitoneal collections are present.
208600000X	Colon and Rectal Surgery	In cases related to extensive colorectal operations and postoperative collections.
174400000X	Emergency Medicine	May provide initial evaluation and stabilization prior to definitive surgical management.

Related Diagnoses

ICD-10 Code	Description	Clinical Relevance
`K66.1`	Peritoneal abscess	Represents intra-abdominal fluid collections that may require surgical drainage or communication with the peritoneal cavity.
`T79.8XXA`	Other early complications of trauma, initial encounter	Includes post-traumatic lymphatic collections or seromas after abdominal trauma.
`T81.4XXA`	Infection following a procedure, initial encounter	Postoperative infected fluid collections or abscesses that necessitate drainage.
`T81.89XA`	Other complications of procedures, initial encounter	Captures noninfectious postoperative complications such as persistent seroma/lymphocele requiring intervention.
`K91.82`	Postoperative lymphatic fistula	Directly related to lymphatic leakage and accumulation that may require operative drainage.

Related CPT Codes

CPT Code	Description	Relationship to This Procedure
`49020`	Drainage of peritoneal abscess; open (e.g., open drainage of an intra-abdominal abscess)	May be performed when the collection extends into the peritoneal cavity or when abscess, rather than simple lymphatic/seroma fluid, is encountered; often in the same operative session.
`49560`	Drainage of subcutaneous abscess; simple, superficial	Performed when a superficial wound or subcutaneous abscess is present adjacent to the extraperitoneal collection and requires separate drainage.
`10160`	Puncture aspiration of abscess, e.g., carbuncle, furuncle, or bulla; simple or single	Used for percutaneous aspiration of smaller localized fluid collections as an alternative or temporizing measure prior to `49062`.
`49405`	Insertion of tunneled intraperitoneal catheter	May be used when ongoing drainage to the peritoneal cavity requires placement of a long-term tunneled catheter for continuous drainage.
`49000`	Unlisted exploratory procedure, abdomen (if specific code not available)	Occasionally used if the procedure performed differs substantially from the descriptive elements of `49062` and no precise code applies.

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