Summary & Overview

CPT 67700: Incision and Drainage of Eyelid Infection

CPT code 67700 represents incision and drainage of an eyelid infection, a focused minor surgical procedure performed to evacuate an abscess or purulent collection in the eyelid. Nationally, this code is relevant to ophthalmology, oculoplastics, and emergency care settings where prompt drainage reduces local tissue damage and prevents spread of infection. The code is commonly billed in outpatient surgical suites, ambulatory surgery centers, and hospital outpatient departments.

Key payers addressed in this analysis include Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna Health, UnitedHealthcare, and Medicare. Readers will find a concise overview of clinical context, typical sites of service, and the common billing considerations for this procedure. The publication outlines expected use cases, service-line alignment, and how this code fits within ambulatory surgical workflows.

The report provides benchmarks for utilization and reimbursement where available, notes relevant policy and coding guidance updates impacting surgical eyelid procedures, and highlights documentation elements relevant to coding clarity. Data not available in the input is noted explicitly where applicable.

AetnaBlue Cross Blue ShieldCigna HealthUnitedHealthcareMedicareCPT 67700eyelid incision and drainageoculoplasticssurgical procedureambulatory surgeryoutpatient surgeryophthalmologyprocedure coding

Billing Code Overview

CPT code 67700 describes a surgical procedure in which the provider makes an incision in the eyelid to drain a localized pocket of infection. This procedure is a minor surgical intervention focused on relieving an abscess or infected collection within the eyelid tissues.

Service type: Surgical incision and drainage of eyelid infection
Typical site of service: Outpatient surgical suite, ambulatory surgery center, or hospital outpatient department

Clinical & Coding Specifications

Clinical Context

A patient presents to the ophthalmology clinic or emergency department with an acutely painful, swollen eyelid localized to the upper or lower lid. Examination shows a fluctuant, erythematous, warm eyelid swelling consistent with an eyelid abscess or acute hordeolum that has failed conservative therapy (warm compresses, topical antibiotics, oral antibiotics if indicated). The clinician arranges a minor surgical procedure—an incision and drainage of the eyelid abscess—performed at the outpatient clinic procedure room, emergency department procedure area, or ambulatory surgical center under local anesthesia. The workflow includes: pre-procedure consent, sterile prep, local anesthetic infiltration, a small eyelid incision to evacuate purulent material, culture collection if clinically indicated, hemostasis, wound packing or centre care as needed, post-procedural instructions, and documentation of procedure details, anesthesia, and findings. Typical patients are adults or children with focal eyelid infections, some with comorbidities such as diabetes that may affect healing; follow-up is arranged within 24–72 hours or sooner for worsening signs.

Coding Specifications

Modifier	Description	When to Use
`00`	No specific modifier (placeholder)	Use as default if payer requires a neutral modifier field for submission.
`11`

Taxonomy Code	Specialty	Notes
`207RC0000X`	Ophthalmology	Most common specialty performing eyelid incision and drainage.
`207RI0200X`	Oculoplastic Surgery (Ophthalmology - Oculoplastic)	Performs complex eyelid procedures and I&D when reconstructive considerations exist.
`208000000X`	Family Medicine	May perform minor eyelid I&D in clinic or emergency settings.
`207L00000X`	Optometry	Some optometrists with procedural privileges may perform minor eyelid I&D depending on state scope.
`163W00000X`	Emergency Medicine	Commonly performs incision and drainage for acute eyelid abscesses in the ED setting.

ICD-10 Code	Description	Clinical Relevance
`H01.001`	Unspecified acute dacryoadenitis, right lacrimal gland	Periocular infections in proximity may present with eyelid swelling requiring I&D when localized abscess forms.
`H01.002`	Unspecified acute dacryoadenitis, left lacrimal gland	As above for left-sided involvement.
`H00.019`	Hordeolum externum right upper eyelid	Common cause of localized eyelid abscess treated with incision and drainage when conservative measures fail.
`H00.029`	Hordeolum externum left upper eyelid	As above for left-sided hordeolum.
`L03.013`	Cellulitis of face, right eyelid and periocular area	Periorbital cellulitis with focal abscess may require incision and drainage if fluctuant collection is present.
`L03.014`	Cellulitis of face, left eyelid and periocular area	As above for left side.
`B96.89`	Other specified bacterial agents as the cause of diseases classified elsewhere	Supports documentation when a specific bacterial pathogen is identified from culture of drained material.

Related CPT Codes

CPT Code	Description	Relationship to This Procedure
`67840`	Repair of eyelid laceration, extensive (involving lid margin)	May be performed if the eyelid abscess is associated with a laceration requiring formal repair after drainage.
`69200`	Removal of foreign body from external eye; conjunctival or corneal foreign body; simple	Performed when a foreign body contributes to localized eyelid or periocular infection and removal is needed before or after I&D.
`12011`	Repair, intermediate, wounds of scalp, arms, and/or legs; 2.6 cm to 7.5 cm (non-facial example)	Example of wound repair coding—if closure beyond simple hemostasis is required after drainage, a repair code appropriate to eyelid may be considered (use facial-specific codes as applicable).
`87070`	Culture, bacterial; any other source except stool, with isolation and presumptive identification of isolates	Used when purulent material obtained at I&D is sent for culture and sensitivity.
`99024`	Postoperative follow-up visit, included in global period (for reporting when separate and required by payer)	Used in documentation of routine postoperative follow-up visits when billing separately is permitted by payer.

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