ICD-10-PCS Billable Code

0HBY7ZX

Excision Supernumerary Breast to Diagnostic with No Device, Via Natural or Artificial Opening Approach

Procedural Specifications

Clinical Axis Detail Definition
Section0 Medical and Surgical
Body SystemH Skin and Breast
OperationB Excision
Body PartY Supernumerary Breast
Approach7 Via Natural or Artificial Opening
DeviceZ No Device
QualifierX Diagnostic

Operation Definition

Cutting out or off, without replacement, a portion of a body part

Procedure Overview

Excision procedures remove a portion of skin or breast tissue without replacing it, and this family spans everything from a shave biopsy of a suspicious mole to a lumpectomy removing a breast tumor with a margin of surrounding tissue. The common thread is that a defined piece of tissue, not the entire organ or structure, is cut away and typically sent to a pathology lab for examination.

Patients most often encounter this family when a mole, cyst, or lump needs to be evaluated or treated, or when a breast biopsy is needed to characterize a finding seen on imaging. Because only part of the body part is taken, the surrounding skin or breast tissue remains intact, which distinguishes these procedures from more extensive surgery that removes an entire structure.

Anatomy & Axis Detail

Supernumerary Breast

A supernumerary breast is an accessory mammary structure that develops along the embryonic milk line, most often appearing in the axilla or upper abdomen, and is excised when it becomes symptomatic, cosmetically bothersome, or when imaging raises concern for the same range of pathology, including fibroadenoma or malignancy, that can occur in normal breast tissue. Because this accessory tissue is hormonally responsive like typical breast parenchyma, it can enlarge with pregnancy, lactation, or the menstrual cycle, which sometimes prompts the initial presentation and surgical referral. Excision generally removes the entire accessory gland along with any associated nipple or areolar tissue if present, since incomplete removal can leave functional tissue behind. Because supernumerary breast tissue can occur at variable sites and is not paired like normal breasts, laterality is not typically a factor in how this body part is coded.

Approach: Via Natural or Artificial Opening

Via Natural or Artificial Opening means the instrument reaches the target site by passing through an existing body orifice, such as the mouth or urethra, or a surgically created opening like a stoma, without additional incision or scope guidance. It is distinguished from the Endoscopic variant by the absence of a visualizing scope, and from External by actually traversing into the body through that opening.

Qualifier: Diagnostic

Applied chiefly to Excision, this qualifier marks that tissue was removed specifically for diagnostic purposes, i.e., a biopsy intended for pathologic evaluation rather than to treat disease. It distinguishes biopsy-type excisions from therapeutic excisions of the same body part, which are coded without this qualifier even though the physical technique may be identical.

Coding & Documentation

Documentation should describe the amount of tissue removed, any margins taken, and whether the intent was diagnostic (an excisional biopsy) or therapeutic. Coders must pay close attention to whether the note describes removal of only part of the breast or skin versus the entire body part, since removing an entire breast is coded to Resection rather than Excision even though both involve cutting tissue away. A common mistake is coding a partial mastectomy or wide local excision as Resection out of habit, or conversely under-coding a case that actually removed the whole breast as Excision.

Commonly Confused With

ResectionResection is the procedure family most easily confused with Excision, and the deciding factor is simply how much of the body part was removed: any portion is Excision, the entire body part is Resection.
ExtirpationExtirpation is also sometimes conflated with Excision, particularly during debridement, since excisional debridement of dead tissue is coded as Excision while nonexcisional scraping or washing away of necrotic material is Extirpation.