AAPC AAPC-CPC Online Practice Questions and Exam Preparation

AAPC AAPC-CPC Online Questions & Answers

• Question 341:

  A 6-French sheath and catheter is placed into the coronary artery and is advanced to the left side of the heart into the ventricle. Ventriculography is performed using power injection of contrast agent. Pressures in the left heart are obtained.

  The coronary arteries are also selected and imaged.

  What CPT code is reported?

  A. 93460
  B. 93454
  C. 93456
  D. 93458
  D. 93458

• Question 342:

  A 45-year-old has a dislocated patella in the left knee after a car accident. She taken to the hospital by EMS for surgical treatment. In the surgery suite, the patient is placed under general anesthesia. After being prepped and draped, the surgeon makes an incision above the knee joint in front of the patella. Dissection is carried through soft tissue and reaching the patella in attempt to reduce the dislocation. When the patella is exposed, it is severely damaged due to cartilage breakdown. The tendon is dissected and using a saw the entire patella is freed and removed. The tendon sheath is closed with sutures.

  What procedure code is reported for this surgery?

  A. 27562-LT
  B. 27552-LT
  C. 27556-LT
  D. 27566-LT
  D. 27566-LT

• Question 343:

  Patient has esotropia of the right eye and presents to operating suite for strabismus surgery. The physician resects the medial rectus horizontal and lateral rectus muscles of the eye and secures them with adjustable sutures. Extensive scar tissue is noted, due to a previous surgery involving an extraocular muscle. Extraocular muscle is isolated, and the muscle is freed from surrounding scar tissues.

  What CPT codes are reported for this surgery?

  A. 67314, 67334
  B. 67316, 67335
  C. 67312, 67335
  D. 67311, 67334
  C. 67312, 67335

• Question 344:

  A patient has chronic cholesteatoma in the right middle ear. The otolaryngologist performed a tympanoplasty with a radical mastoidectomy, removing the middle ear cholesteatoma. Grafting technique was used to repair the eardrum without ossicular chain reconstruction.

  What CPT code is reported for this surgery?

  A. 69645
  B. 69641
  C. 69642
  D. 69643
  B. 69641

• Question 345:

  A patient with age-related osteoporosis is hospitalized after a slip and fall resulting in fractures to both hips.

  The physician orders three-view imaging of both hips and the pelvis, interpreted by the hospital radiologist.

  Later the same day, the patient falls from bed, and the doctor orders three additional views of both hips and the pelvis, interpreted by the same radiologist.

  What CPT(R) coding is reported?

  A. 73522, 73522-76
  B. 73522-76, 73522-51
  C. 73523, 73523-77
  D. 73523-76, 73523-51
  A. 73522, 73522-76

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  Explanation

  73522 = Bilateral hips with pelvis, 3-4 views.

  Modifier -76 = Repeat procedure by the same physician or other qualified health care professional.

  Because the same radiologist interpreted the repeat study on the same day, report the original study and the repeated study with modifier -76.

• Question 346:

  A patient who was training for a marathon collapsed due to heat exhaustion on a very hot day. The patient is driven by his wife to a nonfacility urgent care center for treatment. On examination, the physician diagnoses heat exhaustion and dehydration. The physician begins IV therapy with normal saline consisting of prepackaged fluid and electrolytes. The hydration lasts 1 hour and 30 minutes.

  What CPT(R) coding is reported?

  A. 96360
  B. 96365
  C. 96365, 96366
  D. 96360, 96361
  D. 96360, 96361

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  Explanation

  The patient received IV hydration therapy with normal saline, which lasted for 1 hour and 30 minutes.

  CPT(R) code 96360 is used for initial IV hydration for the first hour. This code applies to the first 31-60 minutes of hydration therapy.

  CPT(R) code 96361 is used for each additional hour of IV hydration. Since the hydration lasted 1 hour and 30 minutes, 96361 should be reported once to cover the additional time after the initial hour.

  Code 96365 is for initial IV infusion for therapeutic, prophylactic, or diagnostic purposes, rather than hydration, and is not applicable in this case.

  Code 96366 is used for additional therapeutic, prophylactic, or diagnostic infusions and does not apply to hydration services.

  Option A, 96360, would only cover the initial hour of hydration, missing the additional time that is appropriately coded with 96361.

  Therefore, the correct answer is D. 96360, 96361.

• Question 347:

  A patient with lymphocytic leukemia is in the oncology office for her scheduled chemotherapy. She is administered Rituximab IV for 2 hours and 30 minutes. Then a sequential IV infusion of Fludarabine is given for 45 minutes.

  What CPT coding is reported?

  A. 96413, 96415 x 2, 96411
  B. 96413, 96415-51 x 2, 96417-51
  C. 96413, 96415, 96417
  D. 96413, 96415-51, 96411-51
  B. 96413, 96415-51 x 2, 96417-51

• Question 348:

  Pre/Post-op diagnosis: Grade 1 endometrial cancer.

  Procedure: Radical hysterectomy and pelvic lymph node sampling.

  Anesthesia: General.

  EBL: 400 mL.

  Complications: None.

  Specimens: Pelvic washings; uterus; tubes; ovaries; pelvic lymph nodes.

  Fluids: 2 L crystalloid.

  Operative details: Frog-leg position; perineum prepped sterile; Foley placed; midline vertical incision from

  umbilicus to symphysis; exploration shows normal upper abdomen and bowel; no para-aortic adenopathy;

  pelvis/perineum normal; washings collected; round ligaments transected; retroperitoneal spaces opened;

  ureters visualized; ovarian vessels isolated/ligated; bladder flap taken down; uterine arteries, uterosacral

  and cardinal ligaments clamped/ligated; uterus removed; vagina closed; lymph node sampling left then

  right with removal of lymphatic tissue from external/internal iliac bifurcation to circumflex iliac vein and

  down to obturator nerve; tumor approximately 40% endometrial surface with less than 50% myometrial

  invasion; closure in layers; patient tolerated well.

  What CPT(R) codes are reported?

  A. 58548, 38770
  B. 58210, 38770
  C. 58210
  D. 58200
  B. 58210, 38770

  ---

  Explanation

  The operative note describes an open radical hysterectomy for endometrial cancer with removal of the uterus, tubes, and ovaries and extensive dissection of uterine arteries, uterosacral ligaments, and cardinal ligaments, consistent with a radical procedure.

  The approach is clearly abdominal/open, with a midline vertical incision and abdominal entry, not laparoscopic, so a laparoscopic radical hysterectomy code such as 58548 is not appropriate. In the answer set, 58210 represents radical abdominal hysterectomy, including bilateral total pelvic lymphadenectomy and para-aortic lymph node sampling when performed, with or without removal of tubes and ovaries.

  Because pelvic lymph node sampling/lymphadenectomy is included in 58210, 38770 is not separately reported.

  Pelvic washings and extensive exploration are included in the primary surgical service and do not add separate CPT codes in this scenario.

  Therefore, the correct code is 58210.

• Question 349:

  Which one of the following activities, when performed, is NOT considered when selecting an E/M service level based on time?

  A. Ordering medications, tests, and/or procedures.
  B. Preparing to see the patient, for example, review of tests.
  C. Time spent on other services that are reported separately.
  D. Documenting clinical information in the patient's medical record.
  C. Time spent on other services that are reported separately.

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  Explanation

  Per CPT(R) E/M guidelines, time spent on separately reported services is excluded from total E/M time calculations.

• Question 350:

  A provider states that all of their office visits should be reported as moderate levels because they treat patients with high-complexity problems.

  Would this be considered a compliance problem?

  A. Yes, it is considered abuse
  B. Yes, it is considered waste
  C. No, high-complexity problems represent a low level
  D. No, a provider can bill for any level they choose
  A. Yes, it is considered abuse

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  Explanation

  Systematically billing all office visits at a predetermined level, without documentation supporting the required medical decision making (MDM) or time, is a classic compliance red flag and is generally treated as abuse, often described as upcoding when higher levels are billed than supported. E/M levels must reflect what was actually performed and documented for that encounter, using the E/M rules, MDM elements or total time, depending on code selection. Even if a provider treats complex patients, not every visit will meet the same level; stable follow-ups may be lower complexity than acute exacerbations or new problems. "Waste" generally refers to inefficient or unnecessary use of resources without intent to misrepresent; a blanket instruction to code moderate levels suggests systematic misbilling rather than inefficiency. Option D is incorrect because providers cannot select any level at will; coding must be supported by documentation. This type of pattern is exactly what audits target, and it can trigger overpayment recoupment, penalties, and corrective action plans.