Neurology & Pain Management Coding Alert

Question: My physician documented that the patient has a cervical disc disorder with myelopathy of the high cervical region. Which ICD-10 code should I report on the claim?

Michigan Subscriber

Answer: You would report M50.01 (Cervical disc disorder with myelopathy, high cervical region) for this diagnosis.

Myelopathy defined: Myelopathy is a neurological disorder due to compression of the spinal cord. A myelopathy can be cervical, thoracic, or lumbar.

You may also run across the following ICD-10 codes for cervical disc disorder with myelopathy:

• M50.00 (Cervical disc disorder with myelopathy, unspecified cervical region)
• M50.020 (Cervical disc disorder with myelopathy, mid-cervical region, unspecified level)
• M50.021 (Cervical disc disorder at C4-C5 level with myelopathy)
• M50.022 (Cervical disc disorder at C5-C6 level with myelopathy)
• M50.023 (Cervical disc disorder at C6-C7 level with myelopathy).