Question

A patient was diagnosed with L4-5 lumbar neuropathy and discogenic pain. The patient underwent an intradiscal electrothermal annuloplasty (IDET) in the radiology suite. What ICD-9-CM code should be used?

-80.50, Excision, destruction and other repair of intervertebral disc, unspecified
-04.2, Destruction of cranial and peripheral nerves
-80.59, Other destruction of intervertebral disc
-05.23, Lumbar sympathectomy

Answer 1

The correct ICD-9-CM code for a patient who underwent an intradiscal electrothermal annuloplasty for L4-5 lumbar neuropathy and discogenic pain is 80.59, which denotes 'Other destruction of intervertebral disc'.

Step-by-step explanation:

The correct International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM) code for a patient diagnosed with L4-5 lumbar neuropathy and discogenic pain who underwent an intradiscal electrothermal annuloplasty (IDET) is 80.59, Other destruction of intervertebral disc. This procedure involves the destruction of nerve fibers in the disc to stop pain sensation, which aligns with the destruction of disc material. IDET is a targeted treatment for back pain related to disc problems, and the ICD-9-CM code 80.59 is designated to capture such procedures. It would not be appropriate to use the other codes mentioned, including excision or destruction of cranial nerves (04.2), unspecified disc procedures (80.50), or lumbar sympathectomy (05.23), as they do not accurately represent the IDET procedure.