2025 CPT code 11310
Effective Date: N/A Surgery - Surgical Procedures on the Integumentary System Feed
Shaving of epidermal or dermal lesion, single lesion, face, ears, eyelids, nose, lips, mucous membrane; lesion diameter 0.5 cm or less.
Modifiers such as 25 (Significant, Separately Identifiable E/M Service) and 59 (Distinct Procedural Service) may be applicable. Modifier 59 would be used when multiple lesions are shaved. Modifier 25 is used when a separate and significant E/M service is provided on the same day.
Medical necessity must be established for this procedure. This could be for diagnostic purposes (e.g., suspicious lesion), symptomatic relief (e.g., painful or irritating lesion), or cosmetic reasons.
The physician prepares the patient, administers local anesthesia, and then shaves the lesion using a horizontal slicing motion. Cautery is used to control bleeding, and the wound is dressed.Subcutaneous tissue is not disturbed.
In simple words: Removal of a small skin bump (0.5 cm or less) on the face, ears, eyelids, nose, lips, or inside the mouth by shaving it off.This includes numbing the area and stopping any bleeding.
This code describes a procedure where a single epidermal or dermal lesion, 0.5 cm or less in diameter, is shaved from the face, ears, eyelids, nose, lips, or mucous membrane.It includes local anesthesia and chemical or electrocauterization of the wound. The wound does not require suture closure.The procedure typically involves using a blade held horizontally to the skin to remove the lesion without disturbing the subcutaneous tissue.
Example 1: A patient has a small benign mole (0.4 cm) on their nose. The physician numbs the area and shaves off the mole., A patient has a small skin tag (0.3 cm) on their eyelid. The physician uses local anesthetic and shaves off the skin tag with a scalpel., A patient has a small rough patch of skin (0.5 cm) on their lip. Following local anesthesia, it is shaved, and electrocautery is used to stop minor bleeding.
Documentation should include the location, size, and description of the lesion, the method of removal (shaving), the use of anesthesia and cautery, and the final state of the wound.
** Histopathologic examination of the shaved tissue is reported separately (e.g., 88304, 88305), but submitting the tissue is not considered a separate biopsy and is not additionally reportable.
- Revenue Code: P6A (MINOR PROCEDURES - SKIN)
- Specialties:Dermatology, Plastic Surgery, Family Medicine, General Surgery
- Place of Service:Office, Outpatient Hospital, Ambulatory Surgical Center