ICD-10-PCS Billable Code

0M9140Z

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

Procedural Specifications

Clinical Axis Detail Definition
Section0 Medical and Surgical
Body SystemM Bursae and Ligaments
Operation9 Drainage
Body Part1 Shoulder Bursa and Ligament, Right
Approach4 Percutaneous Endoscopic
Device0 Drainage 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

Shoulder Bursa and Ligament, Right

The right shoulder bursa and ligament group includes the subacromial-subdeltoid bursa, coracoacromial ligament, and glenohumeral ligaments that support shoulder joint function and reduce friction during arm movement. Drainage in this region most often addresses an infected or inflamed subacromial bursa, such as in septic bursitis, or a fluid collection like a hematoma following injury or surgery, accomplished by needle aspiration or incision to remove the fluid. Because the subacromial space lies close to the rotator cuff tendons and the joint capsule, careful technique is needed to evacuate the collection without damaging these adjacent structures. The procedure may be performed percutaneously or through a small open incision, and documentation should note whether a drain or catheter was left in place, since this affects whether the qualifier reflects drainage with or without a device.

Approach: Percutaneous Endoscopic

Percutaneous Endoscopic combines a puncture through skin or mucous membrane with insertion of an endoscope to visualize the procedure internally, as in laparoscopic cholecystectomy. It is distinguished from plain Percutaneous by the presence of scope-guided visualization, and from Via Natural or Artificial Opening Endoscopic by its route being a new puncture rather than an existing orifice or stoma.

Device: Drainage Device

Drainage Device denotes a device such as a tube or catheter left in place to remove fluid, blood, or air from a body part or cavity following a procedure. It is distinguished from Monitoring Device, which senses and records physiologic data rather than evacuating substances from the body.

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.