2025 CPT code 15650
Effective Date: N/A Surgery - Surgical Procedures on the Integumentary System Feed
Transfer, intermediate, of any pedicle flap (e.g., abdomen to wrist, walking tube), any location.
Medical necessity for 15650 must be supported by documentation that justifies the need for the intermediate transfer of the pedicle flap, explaining why a single-stage procedure was not possible or appropriate.The rationale for the "walking flap" technique should be clearly stated.
The physician prepares the patient and administers anesthesia. Then, they carefully lift the previously created pedicle flap and position it at the recipient site while ensuring a continuous blood supply through the still-attached base. The process often involves incisions, raising the flap, and creating a tunnel beneath the skin to the new location.
In simple words: The surgeon moves a piece of skin and tissue (called a flap), that was prepared earlier, to a new place on your body. The flap is still connected to its original location to keep it alive. This might be one of several moves to get the flap to the final spot.
This code describes the intermediate transfer of a previously created pedicle flap to a new location on the patient's body. The pedicle flap remains partially attached to its original site to maintain blood supply. This procedure may involve incising around the flap, raising it, and tunneling it under the skin to the recipient site.This is often part of a multi-stage process called "walking the flap," where the flap is moved closer to the target site over several procedures.
Example 1: A patient with a burn injury on their hand requires a skin flap from their abdomen. The flap is initially created on the abdomen, and in a separate procedure, code 15650 is used when the flap is moved to the wrist., A patient has a large wound on their leg. A pedicle flap is created on their thigh. During a second surgery, the flap is "walked" closer to the wound on the leg using code 15650., A patient undergoes breast reconstruction after a mastectomy. A flap is created from their back and, in a separate surgery, it is moved to the chest using code 15650 to form the new breast.
Documentation should include details about the size and location of the flap, the recipient site, the technique used for transfer, and the complexity of the procedure.
- Specialties:Plastic Surgery, Reconstructive Surgery, General Surgery
- Place of Service:Inpatient Hospital, Outpatient Hospital, Ambulatory Surgical Center