Neurology & Pain Management Coding Alert

Also, low back pain notches three new Dx codes.

We’ve been reporting on ICD-10 2022 for a few months now, and it finally became reality on October 1.

The problem: The codes are still new, and most people won’t have access to the full ICD-10 2022 list for some time.

To help coders get along, we’ve been featuring new/revised codes for months; in this issue, we’re running a partial list of the diagnosis codes neurology and pain management coders need to know for ICD-10 2022. That way, you’ll be on the ball when a claim for one of these diagnoses arrives on your desk.

Shine a Spotlight on Spondylitis Set

ICD-10 2022 will also add a slew of new codes to the M45 (Ankylosing spondylitis) code set. Further, the set breaks spondyloarthritis into two separate types: non-radiographic axial and ankylosing.

End result: The order might be different in the final publication, but under the M45 in ICD-10 2022, the code list will look like this (new codes in bold):

• M45.A (Non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis)
• M45.0 (Ankylosing spondylitis of multiple sites in spine)
• M45.A0 (Non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis of unspecified sites in spine)
• M45.1 (Ankylosing spondylitis of occipito-atlanto-axial region)
• M45.A1 (Non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis of occipito-atlanto-axial region)
• M45.2 (Ankylosing spondylitis of cervical region)
• M45.A2 (Non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis of cervical region)
• M45.3 (Ankylosing spondylitis of cervicothoracic region)
• M45.A3 (Non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis of cervicothoracic region)
• M45.4 (Ankylosing spondylitis of thoracic region)
• M45.A4 (Non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis of thoracic region)
• M45.5 (Ankylosing spondylitis of thoracolumbar region)
• M45.A5 (Non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis of thoracolumbar region)
• M45.6 (Ankylosing spondylitis lumbar region)
• M45.A6 (Non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis of lumbar region)
• M45.7 (Ankylosing spondylitis of lumbosacral region)
• M45.A7 (Non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis of lumbosacral region)
• M45.8 (Ankylosing spondylitis sacral and sacrococcygeal region)
• M45.A8 (Non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis of sacral and sacrococ­cygeal region)
• M45.AB (Non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis of multiple sites in spine)
• M45.9 (Ankylosing spondylitis of unspecified sites in spine).

Low Back Pain Gets Higher Code Count in 2022

ICD-10 2022 will also aim for greater specificity for patients with low back pain; the 2021 ICD-10 code book only lists a single code under M54.5 (Low back pain). In the latest ICD-10 manual, however, you’ll find this trio of new codes:

• M54.50 (Low back pain, unspecified)
• M54.51 (Vertebrogenic low back pain)
• M54.59 (Other low back pain).

Analysis: This provides greater specificity for patients with low back pain.

Say Hello to S06.A

While most of the ICD-10 2022 additions will round out a code family and make the diagnoses more specific, some of the additions represent entire new code sets, not just additions to existing ones. In October, the S06.0 (Intracranial injury) code family will feature this list of all-new codes:

• S06.A (Traumatic brain compression and herniation)
• S06.A0 (Traumatic brain compression without herniation)
• S06.A0XA (Traumatic brain compression without herniation, initial encounter)
• S06.A0XD (Traumatic brain compression without herniation, subsequent encounter)
• S06.A0XS (Traumatic brain compression without herniation, sequela)
• S06.A1 (Traumatic brain compression with herniation)
• S06.A1XA (Traumatic brain compression with herniation, initial encounter)
• S06.A1XD (Traumatic brain compression with herniation, subsequent encounter)
• S06.A1XS (Traumatic brain compression with herniation, sequela).