Ask Dr. Z

One of our doctors is asking about the location of her cutdown vs. how it is coded. She says the location of the cutdown on the cephalic is still central. She states that she is about an inch away from the subclavian and it’s still on the trunk, not on the extremity. Our concern is that the codes specifically state either central or peripheral, and the cephalic vein is peripheral no matter what part of the vein you access. We have been coding these as 36571. She has asked us to research/review that the cephalic cutdowns for venous access would, in this circumstance, be considered central since she’s not cutting down on the extremity. Can you please advise us of your thoughts on this?