ICD-10-PCS Billable Code

0RP340Z

Removal Cervical Vertebral Disc to No Qualifier with Drainage Device, Percutaneous Endoscopic Approach

Procedural Specifications

Clinical Axis Detail Definition
Section0 Medical and Surgical
Body SystemR Upper Joints
OperationP Removal
Body Part3 Cervical Vertebral Disc
Approach4 Percutaneous Endoscopic
Device0 Drainage Device
QualifierZ No Qualifier

Operation Definition

Taking out or off a device from a body part

Procedure Overview

Removal procedures on the upper joints take out a device that was previously placed in the joint during an earlier operation, without putting anything else in its place. This covers situations like extracting hardware such as pins, screws, or wires used for a prior fracture repair once the bone has healed, removing an infected or loosened joint spacer, or taking out sutures, anchors, or other fixation devices that are no longer needed or are causing problems.

These procedures are performed when a device has served its purpose, has failed, is causing pain or irritation, or has become infected and needs to come out before any further treatment can proceed.

Anatomy & Axis Detail

Cervical Vertebral Disc

The cervical vertebral disc is the fibrocartilaginous cushion between adjacent cervical vertebral bodies that absorbs axial load and permits the flexibility of the neck, and it is a frequent site for artificial disc replacement or interbody spacer placement when degenerative disc disease causes pain or nerve compression. Removal at this level applies when a previously implanted device, such as a disc prosthesis, cage, or spacer, is taken out without a new device being put in its place, which may occur due to implant migration, subsidence, infection, or persistent symptoms. Given the disc space's proximity to the spinal cord and exiting nerve roots, this is technically demanding and typically performed through an anterior cervical approach, so the record should confirm the specific disc level treated.

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

Coding this family requires documentation that a device is being taken out and that nothing is being put in its place during the same operative episode - if a new device is implanted after removal, the procedure is coded instead as Replacement or Revision depending on what happened to the joint itself. The device type and its original purpose should be clear in the note to support the correct device value.

A common error is coding Removal for hardware taken out during a revision arthroplasty, when the removal of an old component and insertion of a new one in the same joint at the same session should instead be captured as a single Replacement procedure. Coders also sometimes overlook that removal of a device from a joint accompanied by repair of joint damage caused by that device requires an additional Repair or Revision code for the corrected tissue.

Commonly Confused With

RevisionRemoval is often confused with Revision, which applies when a previously placed device is being corrected or adjusted in position rather than simply taken out - Revision is used when the device stays in the body in an altered state.
ReplacementIt is also confused with Replacement when a new implant goes in at the same encounter as the old one comes out, since both device changes are captured under the single Replacement root operation rather than as separate Removal and Insertion codes.