ICD 10 – Did you know?
International Classification of Diseases (ICD) is a system used by clinicians and other healthcare providers to code and classify all signs, abnormal findings, symptoms and diseases. The origin of ICD is the ‘List of causes of death’, first published way back in 1893 by the International Institute of Statistics. In 1948, it was taken over by the World Health Organization (WHO), and during this sixth edition, the causes of morbidity was included in the list.
ICD 10 is the current and tenth edition of this list. Developed in 1992 to track mortality statistics, ICD 10 is used internationally for reimbursement systems and statistical purposes. In time, different countries have developed their own ICD 10 code extensions. The US uses the ICD-10-CM (Clinical Modification) and the ICD-10-PCS (Procedure Classification System).
ICD 9 used a coding system that was devised about three decades back. New diseases, medical practices and standards could not be reflected clearly in ICD 9; hence the need for ICD 10.
ICD 10 code for High Cholesterol
A waxy fat like substance, Cholesterol is used as a building block for hormones, chemicals and other structures that are essential for your body. However, in case your body has excess amounts of cholesterol, these may get deposited along the artery walls. This results in reducing the area within the artery and thus decreasing the blood flow in them. Reduced blood flow can result in stroke, heart attack, TIA and peripheral artery disease. High cholesterol is one of the leading risk factors for other illnesses with about 71 million adults in the US having LDL (bad cholesterol).
Hence, it can be assumed that there are large numbers of patient encounters relating to high cholesterol. Documenting and coding patient encounters to submit clean claims is the key to receiving timely and complete payments. So, what are the ICD 10 codes for high cholesterol?
| ICD 10 Diagnosis Code | Diagnosis |
| E78.0 | Hypercholesterolemia |
| Low – density – lipoid – type [LDL] hyperlipoproteinemia | |
| E78.1 | Hypertriglyceridemia |
| Very – low – density – lipoid – type [VLDL] hyperlipoproteinemia | |
| E78.2 | Elevated cholesterol with elevated triglycerides |
| E78.6 | High-density lipoprotein deficiency |
| Depressed HDL cholesterol |
While the codes given above are used for high cholesterol diagnosis, the following is the list of codes in the same group that are used for lipidcentric diagnosis.
| ICD 10 Diagnosis Code | Diagnosis |
| E78.0 | Pure hypercholesterolemia (Group A) |
| E78.1 | Pure hyperglyceridemia (Group B) |
| E78.2 | Mixed hyperlipidemia (Group C) |
| E78.3 | Hyperchylomicronemia (Group D) |
| E78.4 | Other hyperlipidemia |
| E78.5 | Hyperlipidemia, unspecified |
| E78.6 | Lipoprotein deficiency |
| E78.7 | Disorders of bile acid and cholesterol metabolism |
| E78.9 | Disorder of lipoprotein metabolism, unspecified |
Why MedConverge?
While you may correctly diagnose and treat patients, it is also important to document and code your claims correctly. Finding and entering the right ICD-10 high cholesterol codes can be a challenge that will demand your time and energy. While it is not exactly rocket science to find and enter the right high cholesterol ICD-10 codes in your claims, wouldn’t you rather spend your precious time in looking after and treating your patients? With years of experience in medical documentation and coding, MedConverge offers you efficient and error free medical billing services. Our certified coders and medical billers ensure that your claims are collected in time and your revenue cycle is healthy. So, leave the stress (which, by the way, is one of the causes for high cholesterol) of your medical billing to us and do what you do best – making your patients healthy again.
References
- 2018 ICD-10-CM Diagnosis Code E78.5. (2018). Retrieved August 02, 2018, from www.icd10data.com: https://www.icd10data.com/ICD10CM/Codes/E00-E89/E70-E88/E78-/E78.5
- ICD 10 Diagnosis Code for High Cholesterol and Familial Hypercholesterolemia (FH). (2018). Retrieved August 02, 2018, from www.cholesterolmenu.com: https://www.cholesterolmenu.com/high-cholesterol-icd-10-codes/
- LaForge. (2015, November). Commonly Used Lipidcentric ICD 10 (ICD 9) Codes. Retrieved August 02, 2018, from www.lipid.org: https://www.lipid.org/sites/default/files/files/ICD-10_rev_Dec_10.pdf
