Anesthesia Coding Alert

Male and female breast diagnoses will be combined into one family.You currently have a fairly detailed list of diagnosis choices for breast neoplasm surgery, with separate code families based on whether the patient is male or female. Big changes will go into effect under ICD-10, however, so here's what you need to know before reporting your anesthesia provider's involvement. ICD-9 Choices Focus on GenderUnder ICD-9, you choose between two code families for breast cancer, based on the patient's sex.For female patients you use 174.x (Malignant neoplasm of female breast), with your fourth digit options describing the anatomic location:174.0 -- ... nipple and areola174.1 -- ... central portion174.2 -- ... upper-inner quadrant174.3 -- ... lower-inner quadrant174.4 -- ... upper-outer quadrant174.5 -- ... lower-outer quadrant174.6 -- ... axillary tail174.8 -- ... other specified sites of female breast174.9 -- ... breast (female), unspecified.For male patients, you turn to code 175.x (Male neoplasm of male breast). The fourth digit again relates to anatomic site, but you only have two options:175.0 -- ...nipple and [...]