You Be the Coder:
D69.3 and More Apply to This Case
Published on Mon Jul 09, 2012
Question: I'm coding for a patient with ITP, neutropenia, and macrocytic anemia. The physician addressed these during the office visit, including reviewing lab work and medications. Which ICD-9 codes apply to these diagnoses?Arizona SubscriberAnswer: Consider the following codes for your case.ITP: ITP is an abbreviation often used for idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura. Choose 287.31 (Immune thrombocytopenic purpura) for this diagnosis. The illness involves very low platelet counts. Because platelets function to achieve clotting, patients may have bruising (ecchymoses) and hemorrhaging. (The ICD-10-CM equivalent is D69.3, Immune thrombocytopenic purpura.)Neutropenia: If the only information you have is "neutropenia," report 288.00 (Neutropenia, unspecified). ICD-9-CM includes several other possible codes, however, so check your documentation against the various possibilities in the 288.xx (Diseases of white blood cells) and 289.xx (Other diseases of blood and blood-forming organs) ranges. In neutropenia, the patient has a low neutrophil (white blood cell) count in the circulating blood. (ICD-10-CM includes [...]