D3502 — Surgical exposure of root surface — premolar
D3502 exposes the root surface of a premolar for the same purpose.
There are eleven codes for root resection and related procedures and they are not interchangeable. This page covers this one; the root resection and related procedures guide covers the treatment they all share.
What follows is the detail behind the number: the conditions the code sets, its typical fee, its usual benefit treatment, and a code-by-code comparison with its closest neighbours.
What D3502 specifies
Tooth — a premolar: partly visible when you smile, but loaded like a back tooth.
The nearby codes and how they differ
D3501 — Surgical exposure of root surface — anterior: It applies to front tooths rather than premolars.
D3503 — Surgical exposure of root surface — molar: It applies to molars rather than premolars.
D3473 — Surgical repair of root resorption — molar: It applies to molars rather than premolars.
D3472 — Surgical repair of root resorption — premolar: It is that same root-resorption repair on a premolar.
D3502 sits in a group of eleven codes in total; the remainder are linked at the foot of this page. If an estimate lists D3502 and the treatment that follows matches a neighbouring code instead, the office has to resubmit — which delays the payment rather than increasing it.
Every code in this group
These codes describe the same broad procedure and differ in one respect each. Each has its own page with its own fee range and coverage notes.
Questions about D3502
What does dental code D3502 mean?
Read literally, D3502 means surgical exposure of root surface, premolar — and payers do read it literally.
What is the typical fee for D3502?
Plan for $500–$1,400 as the full fee. Two practices a few miles apart can sit at opposite ends of that range for the same work.
Does dental insurance cover D3502?
Expect major / surgical handling — variable. Submitting an estimate first turns that percentage into a number you can rely on.
What is the difference between D3502 and D3501?
D3501 is surgical exposure of root surface, anterior: it applies to front tooths rather than premolars. Because that is the only difference, a reviewer who disagrees with it simply reprices the claim to D3501 rather than refusing it.
Also known as: root amputation, hemisection, decoronation, root resorption, intentional reimplantation.