Summary on SoftBiopsy®, Soft K-Cot® and Soft K-Rette® Utility and Reimbursement

SoftBiopsy®+D SFT-1100, Soft K-Cot® SFT-4200, and Soft K-Rette® SFT-4500 – list price under 250 units at $5.50 per device

SoftBiopsy®+D, Soft K-Cot® and Soft K-Rette® are devices used for debridement and tissue sampling (tangential biopsy/curettage with simultaneous tissue-trapping for lab transport) all use the patented hooked Kylon medical fabric. They are the most versatile devices on the market for the wound care provider. Those with advanced wound care certification can perform surgical “Selective” debridement at many levels and reimbursed based on the setting where the procedure is performed, the size of the wound, the number of wounds debrided, and at the “depth level” of the debridement in accordance with Medicare Part B.

The ideal procedure to convert the Kylon from a brush to a curette for surgical selective debridement is to press it firmly into the wound so the shallow hook tips convert to curettes. Pressing and twisting the tip into the wound will excise, where firm sweeping will shave tissue; all of which can be simply wiped free from the wound once detached.

It is possible to debride into dermis, and subcutaneous tissue levels, but unlikely to the muscle level due to fibrosis, and not indicated for bone debridement. No solid or highly fibrotic tissue can be excised/shaved with Kylon fabric.

A “Facility” would be considered an inpatient hospital, outpatient hospital, and skilled nursing facility. An HOPD (hospital outpatient patient department, likely titled a wound care center tied to a hospital) has a special designation and reimbursement schedule. An example of a non-facility would be the medical office not tied to a hospital outpatient department (private office or clinic) or care in home-health.

The schedule is listed in this overview: 2022 Medicare (MC) national average payments for these services is mid way through this webpage: https://histologicswc.com/resources/guidance-on-wound-debridement,-wound-biopsy,-and-cpt-coding-for-compliant-care.html

Those without advanced wound care certification who care for wounds in facilities can use the “wound hygiene” method of “abrasive paint brushing” the wound surface solely to clear away soft necrotic debris and slough rapidly and with sterile technique with compassion. The staff would be instructed NEVER to press firmly enough to flatten the hooks and to keep the brush bristles upright while sweeping...like a gentle paint-brush. There will be adequate friction to clean a wound with abrasion, and it will be compassionate and rapid compared with other methods. The facility is able to code for CPT Reimbursement –97602 Non-Selective debridement.

Biopsy and coding will be covered in another communication, and include the SoftBiopsy® device, SFT-1000 solely designed for wound base biopsy in surgical care.