CPC - Certified Professional Coder ICD-10-CM Diagnosis Coding Questions and Answers

Question 1

A patient is seen for painful urination and is diagnosed with an acute cystitis.
The patient also has documented chronic cystitis.
According to ICD-10-CM guidelines, how should these conditions be coded and sequenced?

Accepted Answer

Code both acute and chronic cystitis, and sequence the acute cystitis code first.

Answer

Code only the acute cystitis as it is the reason for the visit.

Answer

Code both acute and chronic cystitis, and sequence the chronic cystitis code first.

Answer

Code a combination code for acute and chronic cystitis.

Question 2

A patient presents to the emergency department with an altered mental status after accidentally taking a double dose of their prescribed oxycodone. How should the ICD-10-CM codes be sequenced?

Accepted Answer

Poisoning code for oxycodone first, followed by the altered mental status code.

Answer

Altered mental status code first, followed by the poisoning code for oxycodone.

Answer

Adverse effect code for oxycodone first, followed by the altered mental status code.

Answer

A single combination code for poisoning by oxycodone with altered mental status.

Question 3

A patient is treated for a keloid scar on their left forearm which is a result of a second-degree burn sustained one year ago. Which of the following is the correct coding and sequencing for this encounter?

Accepted Answer

Code for the keloid scar first, followed by the code for the burn with the 7th character 'S' for sequela.

Answer

Code for the burn first, followed by the code for the scar.

Answer

Code only the keloid scar, as the burn is healed.

Answer

Code for the burn with the 7th character 'D' for subsequent encounter, followed by the code for the scar.

Question 4

Which of the following is a key convention when using the placeholder 'X' in an ICD-10-CM code?

Accepted Answer

The 'X' is used to allow for future expansion and must be used for the code to be valid if it fills empty character spaces up to the required 7th character.

Answer

The 'X' is only used for unspecified codes.

Answer

The 'X' indicates the encounter is for a sequela.

Answer

The 'X' is never used as the 5th character.

Question 5

A patient with Type 2 diabetes mellitus is seen for a routine follow-up. The provider documents 'Type 2 DM with diabetic polyneuropathy'. How should this be coded in ICD-10-CM?

Accepted Answer

Use a single combination code, E11.42, which includes both the diabetes and the specific neurological complication.

Answer

Code for polyneuropathy first, then the code for Type 2 diabetes.

Answer

Assign two separate codes: E11.9 for Type 2 diabetes and G62.9 for polyneuropathy.

Answer

Assign code E11.8 for Type 2 diabetes with unspecified complications.

Question 6

A patient is prescribed a new medication and develops a rash. The physician confirms the patient took the medication correctly as prescribed and diagnoses the rash as an adverse effect of the drug. What is the correct sequencing of codes?

Accepted Answer

Code the rash first, followed by the appropriate code from T36-T50 with the 5th or 6th character '5' to indicate an adverse effect.

Answer

Code the drug from the T36-T50 range first, followed by the code for the rash.

Answer

Code only the rash, as it is the manifestation.

Answer

Code the Z-code for long-term drug therapy first, then the rash.