Cleft and Craniofacial Coding in ICD-10

Taub, Peter J. M.D., F.A.C.S., F.A.A.P.
Silver, Lester M.D., M.S.

Dr. Taub is Professor, Surgery, Pediatrics, Dentistry, and Neurosurgery Professor, Medical Education Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery; and Dr. Silver is Professor, Surgery Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York.

Submitted October 2014; Accepted December 2014.

Address correspondence to: Dr. Peter J. Taub, Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and Kravis Children's Hospital, 5 East 98th Street, Box 1259, New York, NY 10029. E-mail [email protected].

The Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Journal 53(3):p e81-e83, May 2016. | DOI: 10.1597/14-114

Objective:

With the gradual replacement of the ICD-9 coding system by the newer ICD-10 system, there is a need to critically evaluate how the system improves—or fails to improve—the coding of specific cleft and craniofacial anomalies. The following review examines the new system and the key components for practitioners who treat patients with such anomalies.

Conclusions:

While seemingly beneficial in certain respects, the newer ICD-10 system remains far from ideal for cleft and craniofacial anomalies. With future iterations of the system, a more concerted effort to precisely code such anomalies is warranted, which will likely require input from key practitioners.