Q&A: Coding for thiamine deficiency while treating prophylactically for potential thiamine deviancy

Q: Can you code for thiamine deficiency if the patient is being treated prophylactically for potential thiamine deviancy?

A: If the thiamine deficiency is not present and they are only preventing it, then a code would not be allowed. Unfortunately, when a condition does not yet exist, we can’t report it. This is an issue for preventative treatment for things such as tobacco withdrawal being prevented by a nicotine patch, malnutrition being prevented with total parenteral nutrition (TPN) and pneumonia being treated preventatively in a chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patient. Whenever it is a preventative therapy, it cannot be reported as a current condition.

Editor’s note: Allen Frady, RN, BSN, CCDS, CCS, CDI education specialist for BLR Healthcare in Middleton, Massachusetts, answered this question. Contact him at AFrady@hcpro.com. For information regarding CDI Boot Camps visit http://hcmarketplace.com/clinical-doc-improvement-boot-camp-1.