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Resection Lungs, Bilateral to No Qualifier with No Device, Open Approach
Procedural Specifications
| Clinical Axis | Detail Definition |
|---|---|
| Section | 0 Medical and Surgical |
| Body System | B Respiratory System |
| Operation | T Resection |
| Body Part | M Lungs, Bilateral |
| Approach | 0 Open |
| Device | Z No Device |
| Qualifier | Z No Qualifier |
Operation Definition
Cutting out or off, without replacement, all of a body part
Procedure Overview
Resection describes the complete surgical removal of an entire respiratory structure without replacing it, and in this body system it most often refers to pneumonectomy, the removal of an entire lung, most commonly performed for lung cancer that cannot be controlled with a smaller resection. It also covers total removal of a lobe when the whole lobe is taken, though partial lobe removal is classified differently.
These are major operations reserved for situations where disease, most often malignancy but sometimes severe infection or destroyed lung tissue, involves an entire anatomically distinct structure, making anything less than complete removal insufficient. Patients undergoing these procedures typically face a lasting reduction in lung capacity, so candidacy is carefully weighed against overall lung function beforehand.
Anatomy & Axis Detail
Lungs, Bilateral
Bilateral lung resection means both lungs are removed in the same operative episode, a rare and extreme intervention essentially confined to the recipient side of a bilateral lung transplant procedure, where diseased native lungs must be excised before donor organs are implanted. End-stage conditions such as cystic fibrosis, severe emphysema, or pulmonary fibrosis that have destroyed both lungs symmetrically prompt this approach rather than staged single-lung resection, since leaving either native lung in place would not resolve the underlying respiratory failure. Documentation of bilateral resection reflects that both organs were excised, whether performed sequentially through a clamshell incision or via separate thoracotomies, and distinguishes the case from sequential bilateral procedures coded and staged individually. Cardiopulmonary bypass support is frequently required given the physiologic demands of removing both lungs.
Approach: Open
Open approach means the surgeon cuts through skin, mucous membrane, or other tissue layers to physically expose the target site to view before performing the procedure. It gives direct visualization and hands-on access, distinguishing it from Percutaneous approaches where instruments pass through a small puncture without exposing the site. Open is typical for procedures needing wide access, such as most laparotomies.
Coding & Documentation
The operative report must clearly state that an entire named anatomical unit, a whole lung, a whole lobe, or the whole trachea, was removed, since ICD-10-PCS Resection requires completeness of that structure. A frequent coding error is applying Resection to a lobectomy when only part of a lobe was actually removed, or applying it to a wedge resection of lung tissue, both of which should be coded as Excision because they remove only a portion of the body part.