ICD-10-PCS Billable Code

0MRS4KZ

Replacement Foot Bursa and Ligament, Right to No Qualifier with Nonautologous Tissue Substitute, Percutaneous Endoscopic Approach

Procedural Specifications

Clinical Axis Detail Definition
Section0 Medical and Surgical
Body SystemM Bursae and Ligaments
OperationR Replacement
Body PartS Foot Bursa and Ligament, Right
Approach4 Percutaneous Endoscopic
DeviceK Nonautologous Tissue Substitute
QualifierZ No Qualifier

Operation Definition

Putting in or on biological or synthetic material that physically takes the place and/or function of all or a portion of a body part

Procedure Overview

Replacement procedures in this family involve putting in biological or synthetic material to physically stand in for all or part of a damaged bursa or, far more commonly, a ligament. The clearest example is anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction, where a torn ACL is removed and replaced with a graft harvested from the patient's own patellar or hamstring tendon, from a donor, or occasionally a synthetic substitute, because the native ligament cannot be sutured back together and heal reliably.

These procedures are performed when a ligament tear is too severe, too chronic, or too central to joint stability for simple suturing to restore function - the knee, shoulder, and elbow are the joints where ligament replacement is most frequently needed. The goal is to give the joint a new structural cable capable of bearing the same mechanical loads as the original ligament, allowing patients to return to sports or daily activity with restored stability. Recovery is longer than for a simple repair, involving staged rehabilitation as the graft incorporates into the surrounding bone.

Anatomy & Axis Detail

Foot Bursa and Ligament, Right

The right foot's bursae and ligaments include the plantar fascia-associated ligaments, the spring ligament supporting the medial longitudinal arch, and various interosseous and bursal structures that maintain the foot's complex weight-bearing architecture. Replacement is uncommon and generally reserved for severe cases of arch collapse, such as advanced posterior tibial tendon dysfunction with spring ligament failure, or traumatic disruption where the native ligament cannot be repaired directly. Graft or synthetic material is used to restore the structural support that maintains arch height and distributes load properly across the foot during gait. Because the foot contains numerous small, functionally distinct ligaments, documentation should specify exactly which structure was replaced and how it relates to the overall arch or joint being stabilized.

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: Nonautologous Tissue Substitute

Nonautologous Tissue Substitute refers to biologic material sourced from a donor or another species, such as an allograft or xenograft, used to replace a body part. It differs from Autologous Tissue Substitute by tissue origin outside the patient's own body, and from Synthetic Substitute by being biologic rather than manufactured material.

Coding & Documentation

Coders assign from this family when documentation clearly states that the native ligament or bursa was removed and a graft or prosthetic material was implanted to take its place - autograft, allograft, and synthetic ligament substitutes all qualify. The operative note should identify the graft source and confirm the original structure was excised rather than left in place. A common assignment error is coding Replacement when the surgeon actually augmented an intact ligament with additional material, which is Supplement; the deciding question is whether the native structure was taken out. Another pitfall is missing the correct body part value when a graft crosses two adjoining structures, such as ACL reconstruction touching both femoral and tibial attachment sites.

Commonly Confused With

SupplementSupplement is the operation most often mixed up with Replacement - Supplement reinforces a ligament that remains largely intact, while Replacement takes the damaged structure out and substitutes new material entirely.
RepairRepair is used instead when the native ligament can simply be sutured back together without any graft material.
ResectionResection differs in that no replacement material is introduced at all; the bursa or ligament is simply excised.