Gastroenterology Coding Alert

Question: What code should I report when a patient presents with an upset stomach due to nervousness?

Oregon Subscriber

Answer: For your primary diagnosis, you should code from Chapter 9 (Diseases of the Digestive System) of your ICD-9 manual for the upset stomach (536.8, Dyspepsia and other specified disorders of function of stomach). Then code from Chapter 16 (Symptoms, Signs, and Ill-Defined Conditions) of the manual with nervousness (799.21) as a secondary diagnosis. ICD-9 introduced 799.21 in 2010, along with two other symptom codes 799.22 (Irritability), and 799.23 (Impulsiveness). These codes provide a more definitive representation for these presenting signs and symptoms than their old counterparts.