ICD-10-PCS Billable Code

0T748ZZ

Dilation Kidney Pelvis, Left to No Qualifier with No Device, Via Natural or Artificial Opening Endoscopic Approach

Procedural Specifications

Clinical Axis Detail Definition
Section0 Medical and Surgical
Body SystemT Urinary System
Operation7 Dilation
Body Part4 Kidney Pelvis, Left
Approach8 Via Natural or Artificial Opening Endoscopic
DeviceZ No Device
QualifierZ No Qualifier

Operation Definition

Expanding an orifice or the lumen of a tubular body part

Procedure Overview

Dilation procedures widen a narrowed segment of the urinary tract, most often the ureter, urethra, or bladder neck, to restore normal urine flow through the existing channel. Balloon dilation of a ureteral stricture or urethral dilation for a post-surgical narrowing are typical examples, frequently performed under cystoscopic or fluoroscopic guidance.

Strictures develop from prior surgery, radiation, chronic catheterization, trauma, or scarring, and if left untreated can cause pain, recurrent infection, or kidney injury from obstructed drainage. Dilation offers a less invasive alternative to reconstructive surgery, though some strictures recur and require repeat treatment or an eventual bypass or repair.

Anatomy & Axis Detail

Kidney Pelvis, Left

The left kidney pelvis collects urine from the renal calyces before it drains into the left ureter, and narrowing at the ureteropelvic junction, whether congenital or acquired from stone disease or prior surgery, is the typical reason for intervention. Dilation widens this constricted segment using balloon or mechanical dilators placed percutaneously through the flank or retrograde via ureteroscopy, opening the lumen without excising tissue. The left kidney's higher position beneath the spleen and diaphragm shapes the percutaneous access angle chosen to reach the pelvis safely. As with contralateral procedures, dilation of the pelvis is often a temporizing or adjunctive step performed alongside stent placement, and the documentation should distinguish this widening maneuver from any endopyelotomy incision performed in the same session, since incising the stricture would be coded differently.

Approach: Via Natural or Artificial Opening Endoscopic

Via Natural or Artificial Opening Endoscopic describes instrumentation introduced through a natural orifice or a surgically created opening while using an endoscope for visualization, as in a routine colonoscopy performed through the anus. It differs from the plain Via Natural or Artificial Opening value by the added scope, and from Percutaneous Endoscopic by using an existing passage rather than a new skin puncture.

Coding & Documentation

Coding depends on confirming that the procedure expanded an existing orifice or lumen without creating a new passage or removing tissue; the device value also matters, since a stent or balloon left temporarily in place changes the code. Documentation should specify the exact site dilated, as ureteral, urethral, and bladder-neck dilations use different body part values. A common mistake is coding Dilation when a stricture was actually incised (Division) or excised, rather than mechanically stretched, or overlooking that an intraluminal device was left behind.

Commonly Confused With

BypassDilation is commonly confused with Bypass, since both address obstruction, but Dilation restores the original channel rather than creating a new route.
DivisionIt is also distinct from Division, which involves cutting through a restricting band rather than stretching the passage open.