Wiki Malignant Hypertension Coding ICD-9 401.0

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clopez

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Hello,

I need some clarification on ICD-9 401.0 Malignant Hypertension,

First of all, once the patient has an episode of Malignant Hypertension will that be the confirmed DX on future encounters? Or is it coded on a case by case?

Second, will a Echo study diagnose Malignant Hypertension and if the patient has Cardiomegaly will this be an indication of Malignant hypertension.

I'm posing these questions because after auditing a Cardiology group and providing them with Coding clinic guidelines and the Definition from ICD-9, the person who does their coding presented me with this rationale which I don't agree with, and this is why I want another opinion.

Thank you!

Cindy
 
Any diagnosis must be documented on the individual encounter. Just because a diagnosis has been documented in a previous note does mean the coder may use that note for this encounter. Cardiomegaly might be an indicator for malignant HTN for the provider, however given a dx of cardiomegaly does not mean the coder may code malignant HTN if not specifically documented. Coding Clinics are recognized by all coding authorities as the final word for compliant coding.
 
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