Anesthesia Coding Alert

Diagnosis Coding:

Consider These Points When Choosing Cervical Disc Disorder Diagnoses

Published on Thu Nov 11, 2021

Check whether a single diagnosis code will suffice.

When you’re trying to pinpoint the most accurate diagnosis possible for a patient with cervical spinal disc disorder, experts say coders should be on the lookout for several factors— including the specific anatomical area and any secondary conditions that might accompany the primary disorder.

Here’s why: Without this information, you risk miscoding the condition, which could affect patient care and your practice’s reimbursement.

Consider this advice from Jessica Miller, MHA, CPC, VP revenue cycle at Ortmann Healthcare Consulting Services in South Carolina, the next time you’re attempting to choose the most accurate diagnosis codes for your spinal disc disorder patients.

Check Whether You Can Combine Codes

When reporting ICD-10 codes for cervical spinal disc disorder, Miller stresses that perseverance and consistency are necessary traits when coding cervical disc disorders, as details you need are often buried in the notes — or not on the operative report at all. This means that you might have to go back and forth with the provider to find the most accurate diagnosis code. Also, be prepared to look at the encounter notes more than once when choosing these ICD-10s, Miller says.

“You’ve got to be scrubbing that note, to see what your doctor’s specifically saying so you can get to the right code,” she explains.

“If multiple levels of the cervical spine are affected, you can only report, the highest level,” says Miller. For example, if a patient has a disc disorder at C4-C5 and C5-6, you should code to C4-5.

Codes can be combined for radiculopathy and disc disorder. For example, you can report:

Cervical disc herniation at C5-6 with radiculopathy as M50.122 (Cervical disc disorder at C5-C6 level with radiculopathy).
Cervical disc herniation at C4-5 and C5-6 with radiculopathy and stenosis as M50.121 (Cervical disc disorder at C4-C5 level with radiculopathy) and M48.02 (Spinal stenosis, cervical region).

The same rules apply to diagnosis coding for patients with myelopathy and disc disorders, explains Miller.

Use These Examples as a Guide

To demonstrate best practices for diagnosis coding for patients with spinal disc disorder, Miller shares several scenarios that featured patients with conditions you could see at your practice. (All examples are from 2018 AHA Coding Clinic, per Miller.)

Example 1: A patient presents with cervical spinal stenosis C5-C6 and degenerative disc disease with myelopathy and radiculopathy that is surgically treated via laminectomy. What ICD-10 code(s) would you choose for C5-C6 cervical spinal stenosis and degenerative disc disease with myelopathy and radiculopathy?

Answer 1: In this case, you should code the cervical spinal stenosis separately, Miller says. You would report the following diagnosis codes:

M48.02 as the primary diagnosis to represent the primary problem treated via laminectomy.
M50.022 (Cervical disc disorder at C5-C6 level with myelopathy) for the myelopathy.
M50.122 (Cervical disc disorder at C5-C6 level with radiculopathy) for the radiculopathy.

Example 2: What is the code assignment for stenosis of the cervical spine at C3-C6 with myelopathy?

Answer 2: You would report M48.02 as a primary diagnosis (spinal stenosis) and G99.2 (Myelopathy in diseases classified elsewhere) for the myelopathy, Miller says.

Example 3: What is the appropriate code assignment for a diagnosis of L4-L5 spondylolisthesis with radiculopathy?

Answer 3: You would report the following codes:

M43.16 (Spondylolisthesis, lumbar region)
M54.16 (Radiculopathy, lumbar region)

You might be tempted to report M51.16 (Intervertebral disc disorders with radiculopathy, lumbar region) for this encounter, but that diagnosis code is not the appropriate code assignment. However, “spondylolisthesis is not an intervertebral disc disorder,” Miller cautions. “In spondylolisthesis, the bony vertebra slips. A disc disorder typically involves herniation or displacement of the interior disc.”