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Oncology & Hematology Coding Alert

Reader Question:

349.0 Applies to Lumbar Puncture Headache

Published on Mon Jul 11, 2011

Question: The physician documented that following a diagnostic spinal tap, the patient had a headache attributed to low cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) pressure. What diagnosis code should we select?Wyoming SubscriberAnswer: The best choice from ICD-9 is 349.0 (Reaction to spinal or lumbar puncture). The descriptor includes the notation of "Headache following lumbar puncture," which could be the situation for the patient in question.Bonus tip: Although many code descriptors will undergo changes when ICD-10 becomes effective in October 2013, 349.0's ICD-10 counterpart will look virtually the same. The new ICD-10 code will be G97.1 (Other reaction to spinal and lumbar puncture). The accompanying notation of included conditions states, "Headache due to lumbar puncture."
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