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Primary Care Coding Alert

Reader Question:

Wheezing ICD-9 Code Doesn't Represent 'WARI'

Published on Sun Nov 11, 2007

Question: Concerning the coding of acute bronchospasm (519.11), when is it appropriate to simply code 786.07 for a diagnosis of wheezing?


Florida Subscriber
Answer: The best code for -wheezing- or what physicians call -wheezing-associated respiratory illness- (WARI) is the five-digit ICD-9 code 519.11 (Acute bronchospasm). Although 786.07 (Wheezing) states -wheezing,- the code refers to stenosis of respiratory passages. Code 519.11 is more specific for bronchospasm. Physicians commonly use the diagnosis of wheezing-associated respiratory illness for children with wheezing not meeting the criteria for a diagnosis of asthma. An example of WARI is a child with an upper respiratory infection who is having his first episode of associated wheezing, requiring treatment of bronchospasm. This would typically not warrant labeling a child with -asthma,- using code 493.02 (Extrinsic asthma; with [acute] exacerbation).
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