EmailACS 1904 Procedural Complications
Publication Date: December 2015
ICD 10 AM Edition: Ninth edition
Retired Date: 30/6/2020
Query Number: 3047
Does a patient who has an episode of hypotension following a procedure and is treated with fluids meet the criteria to be classified as a post operative complication? The patient had only one episode so it could be argued that hypotension is one of those transient conditions that are not normally coded as a complication but a code to identify the condition is used.
Search details:
ACS 1904 states that many conditions may arise during or in the period following a procedure and some are considered to be procedural complications while others are not. Examples of conditions that may occur include ...a transient condition a condition that occurs commonly after a procedure. However ACS 1904 also states that a post procedural complication is a complication which occurs or persists after the procedure and is not evident at the time of the procedure. The definition is: a condition of injury which is directly related to a surgical/procedural intervention is the definition.
Going by this definition this could include transient conditions such as vomiting.
Search details:
ACS 1904 states that many conditions may arise during or in the period following a procedure and some are considered to be procedural complications while others are not. Examples of conditions that may occur include ...a transient condition a condition that occurs commonly after a procedure. However ACS 1904 also states that a post procedural complication is a complication which occurs or persists after the procedure and is not evident at the time of the procedure. The definition is: a condition of injury which is directly related to a surgical/procedural intervention is the definition.
Going by this definition this could include transient conditions such as vomiting.
Response
Regardless of whether or not a condition is transient, ACS 1904 Procedural complications states that procedural complication codes should only be assigned if they meet the following definition: 'A condition or injury which is directly related to a surgical/procedural intervention.'
Based on this definition and the information provided in the query, it does not appear there is documentation to support that the hypotension is directly related to the procedure and so cannot be coded as a procedural complication. Therefore only a code from the I95 Hypotension range should be assigned.
Based on this definition and the information provided in the query, it does not appear there is documentation to support that the hypotension is directly related to the procedure and so cannot be coded as a procedural complication. Therefore only a code from the I95 Hypotension range should be assigned.
