Q: I have a patient whose chief complaint was shortness of breath (SOB) and, after studies, the patient was found to have moderate to large B/L pulmonary embolism (PE) and extensive B/L lower extremity deep vein thrombosis (DVT). The coding staff is using the PE as the principal...Read More »
Sepsis, a dangerous outcome triggered by an infection, can be fast-moving, debilitating, and fatal.
Now researchers are finding that even those who survive tissue damage and organ failure caused by sepsis can have a higher risk of “late death,” defined as mortality within two years of...Read More »
by Lori-Lynne A. Webb, CPC, CCS-P, CCP, CHDA, COBGC, CDIP
The diagnosis of obesity is one of the more difficult documentation matters that CDI specialists likely face. It’s a complicating factor in many areas of healthcare, and its effect on care is multifold.
Q: I have a patient with Stage 4 lung cancer that presented with fatigue, cough, and loss of appetite. Initially, the physician documented possible pulmonary nodular amyloidosis (PNA) but following an echo-cardiogram on day one they found a pericardial effusion (malignant). The...Read More »
The Third International Consensus Definitions for Sepsis and Septic Shock (Sepsis-3)¹ as published on February 23 in the Journal of the American Medical Association represents a radical departure from the prior sepsis definitions in 1991² (...Read More »
More than 700 ACDIS members registered to participate in last week’s ACDIS Quarterly Conference Call. The calls, part of ACDIS membership benefits, features members of the Advisory Board who weigh-in on concerns of the day and respond to participants’ pre-submitted questions.
Q:I can’t distinguish between “code first” and “in diseases classified elsewhere.” Both are used with manifestations and both can’t be sequenced as principal diagnosis, and both need etiology codes so what is the difference?
