Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast)

Most sinus CT scans are done with no dye at all, because the usual question is about blocked air spaces and the shape of the bone. This version images the sinuses twice, once before and once after an iodine injection, which is what a doctor orders when the concern has moved beyond ordinary sinusitis.

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What it is

The paranasal sinuses are air pockets in the bones of the face around the nose. On CT, air is black and bone is white, so a plain scan already shows with great clarity which cavities have filled with fluid or thickened lining and how the drainage channels between them are shaped. That is why a routine sinus CT — the kind ordered for long-running congestion, or by a surgeon mapping anatomy before an operation — needs no contrast. This code covers a scan run twice: one set of images with nothing injected, then an iodine contrast given into a vein and a second set acquired. Comparing the two sets shows which tissue lights up, and that is a question about blood supply, not about air or bone.

Why it is done

To look for infection that has spread beyond the sinus walls, toward the eye socket or the lining of the brain
To investigate a growth or mass in or near the sinuses and see how far it extends
To distinguish inflamed, swollen lining from a solid abnormality, which can look similar on a plain scan
To follow a condition in the sinuses that was already found, where the comparison between the enhanced and unenhanced images is what is being tracked

What to expect

An IV is placed before the scan, and patients are asked about contrast allergies and kidney function. The first set of images is taken with nothing injected; the dye is then given, which usually produces a brief flush of warmth, and the scan is repeated. Lying still is the main demand — the head is positioned and often held with a light support, and the scanner works in seconds per pass. Two acquisitions means roughly twice the radiation of a single-pass sinus CT, and a longer appointment overall, though the whole visit is still typically well under an hour. Metal in dental work and piercings near the face can create streaks in the images, so jewellery is removed.

Questions worth asking

Is a plain sinus CT enough for what is being looked for? Without-contrast sinus CT is the most common version and a separate, lower-priced code.
Some ear, nose and throat offices have their own cone-beam scanner. If that is where this is happening, ask how it is billed compared with a hospital radiology department.
If sinus surgery is planned, ask whether this scan is billed separately or folded into a surgical package, and whether a repeat scan afterward is expected.
Ask whether the estimate you are given covers both the scan and the radiologist's interpretation, which are frequently billed as two different charges to two different payees.

What Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) costs by state

Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Texas — 114 hospitals, median $1,908.25
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in California — 89 hospitals, median $2,652.00
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Florida — 73 hospitals, median $4,318.66
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Ohio — 68 hospitals, median $1,397.40
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Illinois — 51 hospitals, median $2,298.00
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Virginia — 40 hospitals, median $1,388.70
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Tennessee — 38 hospitals, median $587.70
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Washington — 32 hospitals, median $1,406.40
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Wisconsin — 32 hospitals, median $1,679.04
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Pennsylvania — 31 hospitals, median $1,294.80
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Michigan — 27 hospitals, median $2,131.00
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Indiana — 26 hospitals, median $751.50
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Georgia — 25 hospitals, median $1,610.70
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Iowa — 24 hospitals, median $1,593.80
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Arizona — 23 hospitals, median $404.44
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Kentucky — 23 hospitals, median $2,276.40
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in New York — 22 hospitals, median $210.66
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in New Jersey — 21 hospitals, median $632.17
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Missouri — 20 hospitals, median $1,248.00
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Minnesota — 19 hospitals, median $1,824.98
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Colorado — 17 hospitals, median $7,209.29
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Oklahoma — 17 hospitals, median $2,081.95
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in West Virginia — 17 hospitals, median $1,328.50
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in North Carolina — 15 hospitals, median $2,301.08
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Nebraska — 13 hospitals, median $1,787.11
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Arkansas — 11 hospitals, median $1,485.90
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Kansas — 11 hospitals, median $7,282.73
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Mississippi — 11 hospitals, median $848.12
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Oregon — 11 hospitals, median $1,035.00
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in South Carolina — 11 hospitals, median $1,456.50
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Maine — 7 hospitals, median $2,598.20
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in South Dakota — 7 hospitals, median $2,796.80
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Alaska — 5 hospitals, median $2,818.14
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Nevada — 4 hospitals, median $2,111.50
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in North Dakota — 4 hospitals, median $2,582.40
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Wyoming — 4 hospitals, median $2,214.08
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Hawaii — 2 hospitals, median $991.68
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Maryland — 2 hospitals, median $119.40
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Montana — 2 hospitals, median $1,202.40
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in New Mexico — 2 hospitals, median $2,608.20
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in Louisiana — 1 hospitals, median $352.30
Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost in New Hampshire — 1 hospitals, median $2,481.90

Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) prices at hospitals

See every published price for Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast): the full national range, the state and hospital breakdowns, and which hospitals charge the least.

Sinus CT scan (with and without contrast) cost — see all prices →

Sources

RadiologyInfo (RSNA and ACR): CT of the Sinuses (opens in a new tab, leaves healthcosts.net)
MedlinePlus: Sinusitis (opens in a new tab, leaves healthcosts.net)
Wikipedia (opens in a new tab, leaves healthcosts.net)

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