Chapter 7: Diseases of Eye and Adnexa (HØØ-H59)

Chapter 7: Diseases of Eye and Adnexa (HØØ-H59)

Glaucoma is an eye condition that develops when too much fluid pressure builds up inside the eye.  The increased pressure is called intraocular pressure. It can damage the optic nerve that transmits images to the brain. It the pressure continues it can cause loss of vision and even permanent blindness.

Open-angle glaucoma aka wide-angle glaucoma is the most common. The fluid in the eye does not flow property through the drain of the eye, known as the trabecular meshwork.

Angle-closure glaucoma aka acute or chronic angle-closure of narrow-angle glaucoma is less common. The angle between the iris and the cornea is too narrow and can cause poor drainage.

Bilateral glaucoma with same type and stage

Bilateral glaucoma with same type and stage – when there is bilateral glaucoma and both eyes are documented with the same type and stage, and there is a code from bilateral glaucoma, ignore it and instead report only the code for the type of glaucoma, bilateral, with the seventh character for the stage (0-4).

When a patient has bilateral glaucoma and both eyes are documented as being the same type and state, and there is not a code for bilateral glaucoma, report only one code for the type of glaucoma with the seventh character for the stage (0-4).

Bilateral glaucoma with different type and stage

Bilateral glaucoma with different type and stage & laterality code – assign a code for each eye rather than the code for bilateral glaucoma, with the seventh character for the stage (0-4).

Bilateral glaucoma with different type and stage & no laterality code - assign one code for each type of glaucoma with the seventh character for the stage (0-4).

Bilateral glaucoma with the same type, different stage & no laterality code – assign a code for the type of glaucoma for each eye with the seventh character for the specific glaucoma stage documented for each eye.

Indeterminate Stage Glaucoma – assign a seventh character “4”.

Stages of glaucoma are mild, moderate, severe, indeterminate and unspecified.

Cataract is the clouding of the lens of the eye. The lenses assist in focusing rays of light entering the eye onto the retina. In a healthy eye light passes through the transparent lens to the retina. When the lens gets cloudy from a cataract, the vision will be blurry.

Affected areas:

Nuclear – affect the center of the lens

Cortical – affect the edges of the lens

Posterior/Anterior subcapsular – found behind the lens capsule

Congenital – present at birth

Morganian – hypermature cataract

Traumatic – due to blunt trauma, penetrating trauma or perforating eye injury