ICD-10-PCS Billable Code

0M9L3ZZ

Drainage Hip Bursa and Ligament, Right to No Qualifier with No Device, Percutaneous Approach

Procedural Specifications

Clinical Axis Detail Definition
Section0 Medical and Surgical
Body SystemM Bursae and Ligaments
Operation9 Drainage
Body PartL Hip Bursa and Ligament, Right
Approach3 Percutaneous
DeviceZ No Device
QualifierZ No Qualifier

Operation Definition

Taking or letting out fluids and/or gases from a body part

Procedure Overview

Drainage procedures remove fluid or gas that has accumulated within a bursa, most often as a result of inflammation, infection, or trauma. Bursae are small fluid-filled sacs that cushion joints, and when they become irritated or infected they can swell painfully with excess fluid, a condition commonly known as bursitis. Draining the fluid relieves pressure and pain, and in infected cases removes purulent material that antibiotics alone cannot clear.

This can be done with a needle and syringe for straightforward aspiration of a swollen bursa, such as the olecranon bursa at the elbow or the prepatellar bursa at the knee, or through a small incision when the fluid is thicker or infection requires more thorough evacuation.

Drainage is typically a first-line treatment for symptomatic bursitis and is often paired with fluid analysis to identify infection, crystal disease, or bleeding as the underlying cause.

Anatomy & Axis Detail

Hip Bursa and Ligament, Right

The hip region's bursae, including the trochanteric, iliopsoas, and ischial bursae, along with the surrounding capsular ligaments, cushion tendon and bone against friction during weight-bearing and rotation of the joint. On the right side, drainage is most often performed for trochanteric bursitis that has become infected or for a postsurgical hematoma following hip arthroplasty or fracture repair, where fluid accumulation can threaten a prosthetic joint if left untreated. Because the deep bursae sit close to major neurovascular structures and the joint capsule itself, image guidance is frequently used to localize the collection precisely before needle or incisional drainage. Coders should note whether the procedure targeted a superficial bursa accessible percutaneously or a deeper collection requiring open exposure, since this affects both technique and clinical risk.

Approach: Percutaneous

Percutaneous describes entry by needle or instrument puncture through the skin or mucous membrane to reach the site of the procedure, without cutting the tissue open or using a visualizing scope. It differs from Open in that the site itself is never exposed, and from Percutaneous Endoscopic in that no endoscope is used to see internal structures. Common examples include needle biopsies and injections.

Coding & Documentation

The operative or procedure note should describe fluid, pus, or blood being taken out of a bursa, with language such as aspiration, needle drainage, or incision and drainage. Coders need to confirm the target is a bursa rather than a joint space, since joint aspiration is coded to a different body system.

A common assignment error is failing to distinguish diagnostic aspiration from therapeutic drainage when both occur in the same encounter, or missing that a device such as a drain was left in place, which affects the approach and device value. Documentation should also specify whether the procedure was open or percutaneous, since this changes the approach character.

Commonly Confused With

ExtirpationDrainage is frequently confused with Extirpation, which removes solid matter such as a calcified deposit or loose body rather than fluid.
ExcisionIt is also distinct from Excision, where a piece of the bursa wall itself is cut out, sometimes performed alongside drainage when a chronically inflamed bursa is removed rather than simply emptied.