ED Coding and Reimbursement Alert
Reader Question:
Know the Region for Radiculopathy
Published on Fri Dec 07, 2018
Question: A patient presented to our ED with back pain, and the physician diagnosed her with lumbosacral radiculopathy. How should we report this diagnosis?
Codify Subscriber
Answer: When your physician documents a diagnosis of lumbosacral radiculopathy, you should report M54.17 (Radiculopathy, lumbosacral region).
Tip: You will choose the appropriate code for radiculopathy depending upon the region of the spine involved. Your other radiculopathy choices include the following:
- M54.10 (Radiculopathy, site unspecified)
- M54.11 (… occipito-atlanto-axial region)
- M54.12 (… cervical region)
- M54.13 (… cervicothoracic region)
- M54.14 (… thoracic region)
- M54.15 (… thoracolumbar region)
- M54.16 (… lumbar region)
- M54.17 (… lumbosacral region)
- M54.18 (… sacral and sacrococcygeal region).
If you aren’t able to find out where the radiculopathy occurred, evaluate the physician record to find documentation of the location.
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