Ask the Expert

This month’s selection:

What is the diagnosis code for R Erosive Gastritis and modular GAVE?

Debera Lewis

Response:

Gastric antral vascular ectasia (GAVE) or Nodular GAVE (nodular not modular).

See the index and tabular of the code book, starting with the main term of the diagnosis (start with the noun, not with the adjectives):

Ectasia
- gastric antral vascular (GAVE) K31.819
- with hemorrhage K31.811

The term “nodular” is not a defining term in the index, and is not in the instructional notes, nor the “includes or excludes” notes of the tabular and so it does not affect the code assignment.

Erosive gastritis
See the index and tabular of the code book, starting with the main term of the diagnosis.

Gastritis (simple)
- specified not elsewhere classified (no specific subterm for “erosive”) K29.60
- with bleeding K29.61

This code pair is not exclusive to erosive gastritis, as several other types are included in this “other” code. See the index: allergic, giant hypertrophic, granulomatous, and spastic gastritis are all assigned to the same two codes depending on whether there is also associated bleeding.

The patient could have both erosive gastritis and GAVE and therefore require both codes.

(“R” doesn’t affect the gastritis code; was that supposed to be part of the diagnosis?)

— Judy Sturgeon, CCS, CCDS, CICA, is the clinical coding/reimbursement compliance manager at Harris County Hospital District in Houston and a contributing editor at For The Record.