Liposuction with Fat Transfer to Buttocks CPT Code

Liposuction is a surgical procedure in which fat is removed from areas of the body, and then transferred to other areas. Liposuction can be used to remove fat from any area of the body, but it’s most commonly used to remove fat from the thighs, abdomen, buttocks, and arms.

Fat transfer is a procedure that involves taking fat from one part of your body and injecting it into another part of your body. Fat transfer can be used to fill out or add volume to areas like the face or lips that have lost fat due to aging or weight loss. It can also be used as a treatment for people who have lost large amounts of weight quickly (like people who have lost weight due to surgery).

In this article, we’ll discuss liposuction cpt code and buttock lift cpt code.

Liposuction with Fat Transfer to Buttocks CPT Code

A Brazilian butt lift is a popular cosmetic procedure that involves the transfer of fat to help create more fullness in your backside.

If you’ve heard of a Brazilian butt lift and are curious about more permanent results than exercise alone, read more about the procedure and how to find a reputable provider to make sure it’s done safely.

Brazilian Butt-Lift Procedure

A Brazilian butt lift consists of fat grafting that is notable for its natural-looking results. The procedure involves the following steps:

1. The procedure is usually performed under anesthesia, but in procedures where a smaller volume of fat is transferred, it may be done with only local anesthesia (numbing medication). You may ask for an anti-nausea medication beforehand, especially if anesthesia makes you sick.
2. Your surgeon then uses liposuction to remove fat from other areas of your body, such as your hips, stomach, and thighs. Liposuction itself involves making incisions in the skin, and then using a tube to remove fat from the body.
3. The fat stores that have just been removed from your body are purified and readied for injection into your buttocks.
4. Your surgeon finishes by injecting the processed fat into specific areas of the buttocks to create a more rounded, full look. They make three to five incisions around the buttocks for fat transfers.
5. Both liposuction and fat transfer incisions are closed up with stitches. Your surgeon then applies a compression garment against the affected areas of skin to minimize your risk of bleeding.

Buttock Lift Cpt Code

The following Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) codes are valid for use in conjunction with a Brazilian buttlift. Below, you’ll find explanations of each of these codes.

Grafting of autologous soft tissue, other, harvested by direct excision (eg, fat, dermis, fascia.) is how the CPT manual officially describes CPT code 15769.

“Grafting of autologous fat harvested by liposuction technique to the trunk, breasts, scalp, arms, and/or legs; 50 cc or less injectate,” as described in the CPT manual, is the official description of the 15771 CPT code.

CPT 15772 is “Grafting of autologous fat harvested by liposuction technique to the trunk, breasts, scalp, arms, and/or legs; each additional 50 cc injectate, or part thereof.”

Code 15773 in the Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) manual is defined as “Grafting of autologous fat harvested by liposuction technique to face, eyelids, mouth, neck, ears, orbits, genitalia, hands, and/or feet; 25 cc or less injectate.”

CPT 15774 is defined by the CPT manual as follows: “Grafting of autologous fat harvested by liposuction technique to face, eyelids, mouth, neck, ears, orbits, genitalia, hands, and/or feet; each additional 25 cc injectate, or part thereof.”

There are three techniques available to cosmetic surgeons for buttock enhancement. However, buttock implants can enhance the size, shape, and projection of the buttocks, particularly the upper and outer buttocks.

Contouring the posterior can be enhanced by transplanting fat. During a BBL procedure, which is also known as a “Brazilian Butt lift,” fat is sucked out of the hips and waist and injected into the buttocks. Losing fat is not confined to just those places.

In order to enhance the appearance of the bottoms of the buttocks, a Brazilian Butt Lift can be performed instead of traditional skin excision. Butt lifts, like tummy tucks, involve the removal of excess skin and fat from the abdominal region in order to tighten the abdominal wall and reshape the waist, hips, and thighs.

Methods for Performing the Brazilian Butt Lift in Depth

• Tiny incisions are made in the treatment zones to facilitate fat removal and reinsertion.
• In liposuction, an extremely thin and hollow tube called a cannula is used to suction out unwanted fat.
• We’ll be injecting the fat that was removed back into the body.
• The cuts can be closed with sutures.
• There will be a setup of drainage systems.
• The fat transfer will have immediate beneficial effects, though the full results may take up to a year to show.

Explanation of The Buttlift Method

• Medication is used to put it to sleep.
• Liposuction is a practical method of improving one’s physical appearance.
• Drainage solutions should be installed on a temporary basis.
• Therapeutic Measures After Buttock Implantation
• Drains are taken out of the patient’s body during the initial phase of recovery.
• As such, it stresses the importance of using a compression garment during the recovery phase.
• When applying pressure to the buttocks, remember to follow the guidelines.
• Repairs can be considered simple when the wound is small, confined to the epidermis, dermis, or subcutaneous tissues, and only a single layer of closure is necessary.

Local anesthetics and chemical or electrical cauterization to close open wounds fall into this category. Trustworthy medical billing services employ teams that stay abreast of these shifts and assist providers in submitting claims as efficiently and accurately as possible.

Brazilian Butt-Lift Surgery Benefits

Unlike other forms of buttock surgery, such as placement of silicone buttock implants, a Brazilian butt lift is touted for providing more natural-looking results while also creating more roundness in your backside.

It can also help address certain issues, such as the sagging and shapelessness that sometimes occur with age.

If you find it uncomfortable to wear clothing because of figure imbalances, you might also think about the procedure.

Another benefit to Brazilian butt lifts is that there is a lower risk of infection compared to silicone buttock implants. It does have a better safety profile than other substances, such as silicone caulking and sealants, that are sometimes illegally injected into buttocks by people not qualified to perform the procedure.

Despite these advantages, there are some serious side effects to consider.

Brazilian Butt-Lift Side Effects

A Brazilian butt lift may carry fewer risks compared to other surgeries, such as silicone buttock implants. Still, as with any surgery, this procedure carries the risk of side effects — some very serious. These include:

• infection
• scarring
• pain
• lumps under the skin in the areas suctioned or injected
• loss of skin in the treated areas due to deep infection
• fat embolism in the heart or lungs, which can be deadly

Current reports show a fatality rate of 1 in 3000 as a result of Brazilian butt lifts. When the procedure is performed incorrectly, injected fat can enter the large veins in the buttocks, and then travel to the lungs. This causes respiratory distress and ultimately death.

Another known side effect is the failure of your buttocks to take up the grafted fat stores. A certain amount of the fat injected is broken down and absorbed by the body. Sometimes you may need an additional one or two procedures.

To help minimize this risk, your surgeon may insert extra fat the first time around.

Before and after

Curious about what a Brazilian butt lift looks like? Your provider should also have a portfolio of pictures to give you a better idea of their work.

Liposuction CPT Code

Key Plastic Surgery Coding Changes For 2020

In 2020, there are 394 CPT code changes, including 248 new codes, 71 deletions, and 75 revisions. Plastic surgery is one of the specialties that has new codes effective January 1, 2020. There are new codes for fat grafting as well as new complex repair guidelines. Companies providing coding and physician billing services can help plastic surgeons utilize the new CPT codes for accurate reporting of services and procedures. Here we discuss three key updates for plastic surgery:

• New CPT codes for fat grafting
• New instructional parentheticals for reporting breast reduction surgery codes
• Updated definitions intermediate and complex repair of lacerations and wounds

New CPT Codes for Fat Grafting: Used in both aesthetic and reconstructive procedures, fat grafting or fat transfer is one of the most popular options for plastic surgery procedures such as breast augmentation, buttock augmentation, facial enhancements, and hand rejuvenation.

Fat transfer involves using the patient’s own fat to enhance specific areas of the body to improve visible signs of aging and several other concerns. Unwanted fat is extracted from specific areas via liposuction, purified and injected into the areas that need enhancement such as the breasts, buttocks, etc. The Brazilian butt lift and composite breast augmentation (a combination of implants and fat grafting) are popular procedures performed using advanced fat transfer techniques.

Fat grafting owes much of its popularity to the fact that it uses autologous tissue to provide natural looking results. Risks of rejection, such as may occur with the insertion of foreign material, are also reduced when the patient’s own fat is used. Recent market research studies revealed that rising preference for the use of non-invasive aesthetic techniques are driving the growth of the autologous fat grafting market. The key factors that make autologous fat grafting continue to gain traction over invasive techniques are:

• Demand for minimally invasive aesthetic techniques
• Less downtime and quicker recovery than invasive surgery
• Regenerative properties of autologous tissue
• Safety and precision of new liposuction methods in autologous fat grafting
• Celebrity endorsements

The CPT code changes for autologous fat grafting effect Jan 1, 2020 include one deleted code (20926) and five new codes (15769–15774) to better represent the many different types of tissue grafts that require different physician work.

Deleted: CPT code 20926 Tissue grafts, other (e.g. paratenon, fat, dermis)

New: Five new CPT codes in the Integumentary system, other flaps and grafts section allow providers to report tissue grafting based on anatomic site and volume:

15769 Grafting of autologous soft tissue, other, harvested by direct excision (e.g. fat, dermis, fascia)

15771 Grafting of autologous fat harvested by liposuction technique to trunk, breasts, scalp, arms and/or legs; 50cc or less injectate

15772 Each additional 50cc injectate, or part thereof (List separately in addition to code for primary procedure). Code 15772 should be used in conjunction with code 15771

15773 Grafting of autologous fat harvested by liposuction technique to face, eyelids, mouth, neck, ears, orbits, genitalia, hands and/or feet; 25cc or less injectate

15774 Each additional 25cc injectate, or part thereof (List separately in addition to code for primary procedure). Cose 15774 should be used in conjunction with 15773

Breast Reduction: Breast reduction surgery is performed to reduce the size of overly large breasts. Breast reduction for women (reduction mammoplasty) removes excess tissue and skin and reshapes the breasts. The procedure also restores the entire nipple and areola complex to the normal position. Male breast reduction is performed to address gynecomastia (abnormal enlargement of the male breast).

In 2020, the CPT changes pertaining to breast reduction are the addition of new instructional parentheticals for reporting the following codes:

• 19300, Mastectomy for gynecomastia, for breast tissue removed for breast reduction for gynecomastia
• 19318, Reduction mammaplasty, for breast tissue removed for breast size reduction for other than gynecomastia

Knowing payer rules is crucial when submitting claims for plastic surgery. Payers generally reimburse breast reduction surgery that is reconstructive and medically necessary and exclude cosmetic procedures from coverage.

Updated Complex Repair Guidelines: Coding changes for plastic surgery also includes updated definitions for intermediate and complex repair of lacerations and wounds (www.plasticsurgery.org).

• Simple repair is used when the wound is superficial; e.g. involving primarily epidermis or dermis, or subcutaneous tissues without significant involvement of deeper structures, and requires simple one layer closure. This includes local anesthesia and chemical or electrocauterization of wounds not closed.
• In addition to the above, intermediate repair involves closing one or more of the deeper layers of subcutaneous tissue and superficial (non-muscle) fascia. This is done on top of the closure of the skin’s epidermis and dermis. It includes limited undermining (defined as a distance less than the maximum width of the defect, measured perpendicular to the closure line, along at least one entire edge of the defect). Single-layer closure of heavily contaminated wounds that have required extensive cleaning or removal of particulate matter also constitutes intermediate repair.
• Complex repair includes the repair of wounds that, in addition to the requirements for intermediate repair, require at least one of the following: exposure of bone, cartilage, tendon, or named neurovascular structure; debridement of wound edges (e.g. traumatic lacerations or avulsions), extensive undermining (defined as a distance greater than or equal to the maximum width of the defect, measured perpendicular to the closure line along at least on entire edge of defect); involvement of free margins of helical rim, vermilion border, or nostril rim; placement of retention sutures. Necessary preparation includes the creation of a limited defect for repairs or the debridement of complicated lacerations or avulsions. It is not part of complex repair to remove benign (11400–11446) or malignant (11600–11646) growths, prepare a wound bed through excision (15002-15005), or clean up an open fracture or dislocation.

Navigating code changes and billing guidelines for any specialty is easier with the help of an experienced medical billing service provider. Teams in reliable medical billing companies stay up to date with these changes and can help providers submit error-free claims to ensure faster and correct reimbursement.

The Takeaway

Brazilian butt-lift surgeries are increasing in popularity in the United States. When performed by a board-certified, experienced surgeon, you will have a better chance at a good outcome. Be prepared ahead of time and know the process, costs, and recovery time before signing up.

While the Brazilian butt lift is a popular surgery, it isn’t right for everyone. Talk to your surgeon about what your desired outcomes are as well as your health history. They may recommend this procedure or something different that will better suit your needs.