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Coding Corner Question

  |  Issue: March 2010  |  

A 68-year-old male established patient with osteoarthritis of the lumbar region returns for a scheduled paravertebral facet joint nerve injection.

The patient is currently on a nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug and ranitidine and also takes glucosamine–chondroitin. He reports pain, stiffness, and swelling in his lower lumbar vertebrae, and he denies any other complaints.

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Two facet paravertebral injections on L4 and L5 of the lumbar with intraarticular corticosteroid injection are performed, and a fluoroscopic guidance is done for the supervision of needle placement.

How would you code this?

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