Neurology & Pain Management Coding Alert

Some examples of patients who might receive neurocritical care E/M services include patients with the following diagnoses:

• Cerebral vascular occlusion/stroke (434)
• Hydrocephalus (742.3)
• Intracerebral hemorrhage (431)
• Myasthenia gravis crisis (358.01)
• Spinal cord injury (952)
• Status migrainosus (346)
• Status epilepticus (345.3)
• Subarachnoid hemorrhage (852.1)
• Traumatic brain injury (V80.01).

Caveat: A patient suffering from one of the listed conditions does not necessarily need critical care. The key to critical care patients is the potential for rapid deterioration without immediate physician intervention.