Neurology & Pain Management Coding Alert

You no longer have to lump these two diseases under 359.89. Stumped by what code to use for inclusion body myositis (IBM)? ICD-9 2010 ends your search with a specific code. There are three main types of inflammatory myopathies: polymyositis, dermatomyositis, and inclusion body myositis (IBM). Although the first two diseases are mentioned specifically in ICD-9 2009, the latter was absent. When coding for these diseases, here's how to hit a home run. Include IBM in Your Neurology Diagnosis List Although neurologists agree that IBM is the most common form of inflammatory myopathy in Americans older than 50, prior editions of ICD-9-CM have sorely missed out on providing a specific code for this disease. "In 2009, the alphabetic index did not include any referencing term under myositis and directed providers to 359.89 under inflammatory myopathy," according to Marvel J. Hammer, RN, CPC, CCS-P, PCS, ACS-PM, CHCO, with MJH Consulting in [...]