If an ultrasound of the liver/spleen is ordered and during imaging, the midline is crossed and everything in the right and left upper quadrants of the abdomen are imaged and documented, would this be coded as a complete exam?
No. There must be nine elements evaluated for a complete abdominal ultrasound (76700). Those elements are the liver, spleen, common bile duct, gallbladder, pancreas, right kidney, left kidney, abdominal aorta, and IVC (plus any other abdominal pathology seen). If these nine elements are not imaged and documented, it must be coded as a limited exam (76705). The example of “1 quadrant” in the definition of code 76705 is just an example of a limited exam. It does not mean that if the left and right upper quadrants are imaged that a complete ultrasound exam can be coded.
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