Additional category codes provide complication specificity.
Coders who frequently turn to the T80-T88 (Complications of surgical and medical care, not elsewhere classified) block of codes will find much of interest in the 2019 ICD-10 revisions. That’s because the T81.4 (Infection following a procedure) codes have been given an extensive expansion in the tabular list.
Six new categories have been added, which, with the addition of seventh characters, will add a degree of granularity to reporting post-procedural complications created by incisions and in specific surgical sites that has previously been unavailable.
Let’s break the changes down.
Check out Post-Procedural Infection Codes
Effective Oct. 1, you’ll find coding updates that allow additional specificity in post-procedural infection coding. Three codes are scheduled for deletion in this category: T81.4XXA (Infection following a procedure, initial encounter), T81.4XXD (Infection following a procedure, subsequent encounter), and T81.4XXS (Infection following a procedure, sequela).
To replace these deleted codes, ICD-10 is going infinitely more granular. You’ll find over 20 new codes that describe more specifics of the post-procedural infection or other condition, all of which fall under the following parent codes:
The above codes represent the primary new codes, each of which will expand out to additional characters to describe whether the encounter was initial, subsequent, or for sequela. An example from the T81.40 section follows:
The additional codes in the series follow this lead, with the “A,” “D,” and “S” seventh character designations.
Check This Example
Consider the following example to see how you may encounter postsurgical infection billing:
A patient was hospitalized for a pulmonary embolism, and a surgeon removed the clot and inserted a filter to prevent any future issues. The patient presents to your practice several weeks after the procedure for a planned transfer of care from the surgeon. The pulmonologist notices that the patient has swelling, pus and inflammation at the surgical site. She asks the patient if he has shown the surgeon the issue and the patient says he cancelled his follow-up with the surgeon due to scheduling issues and planned to only continue follow-up with the pulmonologist.
The pulmonologist prescribes an antibiotic and contacts the surgeon’s office to arrange for a complete post-surgical follow-up later that day. The pulmonologist will link the visit to T81.41XA (Infection following a procedure, superficial incisional surgical site, initial encounter).