Question: Does it matter which hypoglycemia code I report for our patients?
Nevada Subscriber
Answer: Yes. In an endocrinology practice, chances are you are seeing diabetic patients with hypoglycemia, and those patients merit 250.8 (Diabetic hypoglycemia). The ICD-9 manual also specifies codes for various other types of hyperglycemia:
If your physician doesn't specify that a patient has diabetic hypoglycemia, you may have to report the unspecified code (251.2) due to lack of documentation. Whenever possible, however, you should report the most specific code for this diagnosis.
