The Coding Institute LLC, 2222 Sedwick Drive, Durham, NC 27713

The Coding Institute LLC, 2222 Sedwick Drive, Durham, NC 27713

Hypertension is one diagnosis that will have fewer code choices in ICD-10 and you will not have to specify whether it’s malignant, benign or unspecified!

Hypertension can be defined as the increase of pressure in the arteries, which can differ in the degree of severity, based on the level of the blood pressure reading. Essentially, there are two types of hypertension – primary or essential hypertension and secondary hypertension. While the primary or essential hypertension develops gradually over many years, secondary hypertension seems to appear suddenly. Most hypertension is considered primary.

The Coding Institute LLC, 2222 Sedwick Drive, Durham, NC 27713

Although many diagnoses will expand to multiple options in ICD-10, hypertension is one diagnosis that will have fewer choices in the new system. Currently, while coding for primary hypertension in ICD-9, you need to figure out whether the hypertension is malignant, benign or unspecified. The category code 401.x is used and the fourth digit for 401.x code shows whether the hypertension is malignant, benign or unspecified.401.0 (malignant);401.1 (benign); or401.9 (unspecified).In ICD-10, there will be one primary hypertension code – I10 (Essential [primary] hypertension) — and you will not be required to specify whether it’s malignant, benign or unspecified!

The Coding Institute LLC, 2222 Sedwick Drive, Durham, NC 27713

ICD-10 Hypertension

Hypertension coding can also be organized by organ involvement

This is to say that when hypertension leads to heart disease, chronic kidney disease, or both heart and chronic kidney disease, there are separate code categories in both ICD-9 and ICD-10. For instance, ICD-9 has one code for hypertensive heart disease –402.xx/I11 – and ICD-10 has two codes: I11.0 (Hypertensive heart disease with heart failure) and I11.9 (Hypertensive heart disease without heart failure) after the switchover.Again, when you choose a diagnosis code for a patient who has been diagnosed with both chronic kidney disease and hypertensive heart disease in ICD-9, you’ll use codes from the 404.xx category. In ICD-10, you’ll have to choose from four I13 codes.

The Coding Institute LLC, 2222 Sedwick Drive, Durham, NC 27713

Watch for this confusion

Even though coding for hypertension would be fairly straightforward in ICD-10, you need to be careful here. In ICD-9 code, the “0” in the fifth digit means that the patient doesn’t have heart failure whereas in ICD-10 code, the “0” on the end of the code means that patient has suffered from heart failure.Additionally, you’ll need to focus on documentation because cause and documentation go hand in hand. For instance, in order to list a 402.xx or I11 code, you need to have documentation to support a causal relationship between the patient’s hypertension and his heart disease. If you do not have documentation to show that the two conditions are linked, you need to report them separately. The key to correct hypertension coding is documentation and you need to ask your physicians to explicitly document what type of hypertension they are treating.

The Coding Institute LLC, 2222 Sedwick Drive, Durham, NC 27713

For any assistance Call us @ (866)-228-9252

OR

Visit us @ www.supercoder.com

The Coding Institute LLC, 2222 Sedwick Drive, Durham, NC 27713