Cardiology, Cardiovascular  & Peripheral Vascular Surgery/Vascular Lab Services

2nd edition, Revised  2007

Table of Contents

Cardiology Clinical Review Criteria Guidelines  

Acoustic Heart Scans/Recordings

Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring

Ambulatory electrocardiography including Medicare coverage framework

Cardiology Consultation or Referral for Care

Chest pain/myocardial infarction, admission criteria guidelines

Cardiac catheterization, right heart; Central venous pressure monitoring

Cardiac Catheterization, left; Coronary arteriography; Angiography and Ventriculography

Cardiac Event Monitors/Real Time Cardiac Surveillance System – Loop Recorders

Implanted Loop Recorders

Cardiac Output Monitoring by Electrical Bioimpedance

Cardiac catheter or operative ablation of arrythmogenic foci

Congestive Heart Failure – admission, discharge criteria guidelines

Coronary Artery Disease Electron-beam CT (EBCT) Screens

Defibrillator devices, automatic implantable cardioverter

Direct current cardioversion, elective

Directional coronary atherectomy (DCA)

Echocardiograms, adult and pediatric

Doppler Echocardiography

Electrocardiograms, Cardiointegram (CIG), EKGs correlated with Acoustic Heart Sounds, Body Surface Potential Mapping

Electrophysiology testing (ET)

      T-Wave Alternans (TWA) testing                                                                          

Electron-beam CT (EBCT) Screens – for coronary artery disease

Endocardial Electrical Recording and Stimulation (EES), Diagnostic

Enhanced External Counterpulsation (ECP)

Exercise Treadmill Test (ETT)/ ‘stress test’

Exercise Treadmill Test with Thallium imaging/Stress Test

Holter Monitor - refer to ambulatory electrocardiography

Pacemakers, permanent cardiac/Resynchronization Therapy

Resynchronization Therapy

Pacemaker monitors

Pacemaker – monitoring frequency

Pacemakers/External manually activated devices to terminate tachyarrhythmias

Pacemaker reference list

Percutaneous Transluminal Coronary Angioplasty (PTCA) 

Radiofrequency Catheter Ablation Procedures

Stents, coronary artery

Stress tests – refer to the preceding Exercise Treadmill Test sections

Thoracic electrical bioimpedance (TEB)

Thrombolysis for acute myocardial infarction

Tilt table testing

Cardiac Rehabilitation Program Guidelines

Cardiac Rehabilitation Services – Medicare Policy

Phonocardiography and Vectorcardiography

Screening for cardiac disease

Length of stay benchmarks/targets for cardiology diagnoses

Acute Myocardial Infarction LOS – reference list

Cardiology Notes

Cardiovascular/Peripheral Vascular surgery guidelines

·         Alcohol Septal Ablation for Hypertrophic Obstructive Cardiomyopathy

·         Aortic Aneurysm Repair – endovascular stent-grafts

·         Aortic/Mitral/Tricuspid Valve Replacement and/or Repair

·         Percutaneous Transluminal Angioplasty (PTA) and/or Atherectomy    

·         Atrial Septal Defect, repair

·         Carotid body tumor resection (Glomectomy)

·         Carotid Endarterectomy (CEA) – Indications, LOS

·         Carotid/Vertebral Artery Angioplasty and Stenting Procedures

·         Coronary artery bypass graft(s) surgery (CABG); Indications, LOS

·         Extracranial-Intracranial arterial bypass surgery  

·         Intermittent claudication

·         Impedance plethysmography

·         Intraoperative Ventricular Mapping

·         Left Ventricular Assist Devices

·         Maze Procedure for atrial fibrillation/flutter

·         Microsurgical lymphaticovenous anastomosis operation for lymphedema

·         Pectus excavatum and Pectus carinatum - Surgical Correction

·         Photophoresis, extracorporeal - Therapy for Heart Transplant Rejection

·         Post-thoracotomy Pain - Intraoperative, Intercostal Nerves, Cryoanalgesia

·         Pulmonary vein isolation for atrial fibrillation

·         Transcoronary ablation of septal hypertrophy (TASH)  

·         Transmyocardial laser revascularization

·         Varicose vein procedures

·         Ventricular Assist Devices – refer to left ventricular assist devices

·         Ventricular Reduction/Remodeling or Partial Left Ventriculectomy (PLV)

·         Vertebral artery surgery

Vascular Laboratory Guidelines  

Carotid function, non-invasive tests (update 10-03)

 Ø      Duplex scan of carotid arteries; vertebral arteries

 Ø      Ocular Plethysmography (OPG) and Ophthalmodynamometry

 Ø      Transcranial doppler

 Penile doppler and Corpora Cavernosonography

Peripheral arterial non-invasive studies

Ø      Segmental Doppler Pressures and Pulse Volume Recording                                                

Ø Ankle/Brachial Index (ABI)

Ø      Exercise (Stress) Doppler Test

Ø      Peripheral Arterial Duplex Scan

Ø      Digital Arterial Evaluation

Visceral arterial duplex imaging

      o         Impedance Plethysmography, Limb

Peripheral venous non-invasive studies/ultrasonography 

Hemorheograph

AcuTect/Scintigraphic Imaging for Detection/Localization of Lower Limb Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT)

Thermography and Temperature Gradient Studies 

Web Site Links and extensive references for Cardiology and Cardiovascular Surgery topics are listed.

E-mail apollomanagedcare@cox.net to request example pages or additional information.

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