ICD-10-PCS Billable Code

07DJ3ZX

Extraction Lymphatic, Left Inguinal to Diagnostic with No Device, Percutaneous Approach

Procedural Specifications

Clinical Axis Detail Definition
Section0 Medical and Surgical
Body System7 Lymphatic and Hemic Systems
OperationD Extraction
Body PartJ Lymphatic, Left Inguinal
Approach3 Percutaneous
DeviceZ No Device
QualifierX Diagnostic

Operation Definition

Pulling or stripping out or off all or a portion of a body part by the use of force

Procedure Overview

Extraction in this body system almost always refers to bone marrow procedures - pulling out marrow tissue using a needle and manual force rather than a cutting instrument. A physician advances a needle into the marrow cavity, usually at the posterior iliac crest, and withdraws either a liquid marrow sample by aspiration or a solid core sample by twisting and pulling the needle free.

These procedures are performed to evaluate blood cell production when someone has unexplained anemia, abnormal blood counts, a suspected blood cancer, or to stage lymphoma. The same technique, at larger volume, is used to harvest marrow for a stem cell or bone marrow transplant, where the marrow is collected from a donor rather than for diagnosis.

Because the tissue is pulled or stripped out by force rather than sliced away, this family sits apart from ordinary biopsy techniques used on solid organs, even though the clinical intent, sampling tissue for evaluation, is similar.

Anatomy & Axis Detail

Lymphatic, Left Inguinal

Mirroring its right-sided counterpart, the left inguinal nodal group lies in the femoral triangle and drains lymph from the left leg, perineum, and lower trunk, making it a common site for sentinel node sampling in melanoma or vulvar and penile malignancies affecting that side. Extraction pulls node fragments or lymphatic tissue free using suction, forceps, or a cutting instrument without formal dissection of surrounding structures, differing from the more extensive excision used in staging lymphadenectomy. The proximity of the saphenofemoral junction and femoral vessels means the approach is typically kept superficial and image- or palpation-guided. As with the right side, precise laterality documentation is essential because left and right inguinal chains are coded as separate anatomic values.

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.

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

Coders need documentation specifying whether the procedure was a marrow aspiration (liquid marrow withdrawn by syringe), a core biopsy (a solid cylinder of marrow pulled out with a biopsy needle), or both, since both are captured under Extraction but the approach and diagnostic qualifier may differ. The note should confirm the bone marrow was the target, not a separate skeletal structure, since a bone biopsy with marrow incidentally obtained is coded differently.

A common mistake is defaulting to Excision because the word "biopsy" appears in the note; bone marrow biopsy is Extraction by PCS definition regardless of that word choice. Another error is failing to separately code an aspiration and a core biopsy performed at the same session through two separate needle passes, when guidelines call for capturing both.

Commonly Confused With

ExcisionExcision is the term coders reflexively reach for with any biopsy, but marrow sampling is defined as Extraction because the tissue is physically pulled free rather than cut.
DrainageDrainage is sometimes confused with marrow aspiration since both involve a needle and a syringe, but drainage removes fluid that has abnormally accumulated, while aspiration pulls normal marrow tissue for sampling.
InsertionInsertion of a bone marrow harvest device is a separate, uncommon consideration only if a mechanical harvesting system rather than manual extraction is used.