Crohn's disease causes inflammation of the digestive system. This article lists the ICD-10 codes for reporting this condition.

1. Get to Know Those ICD-10
Codes to Report Crohn's
Disease
Crohn's disease causes
inflammation of the
digestive system. This
article lists the ICD-10
codes for reporting this
condition.
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Crohn's disease is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)
characterized by inflammation of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract.
Inflammation caused by Crohn's disease can involve different areas of
the digestive tract in different people. The disease most commonly
occurs in the small intestine and the colon. In some people, the
condition affects only the last segment of the small intestine (ileum)
whereas in others it is confined to the colon (part of the large
intestine). However, it can easily spread or affect any other part of
your gastrointestinal tract, from your mouth to your anus. The
inflammation caused by Crohn’s disease often spreads deep in to the
layers of the affected bowel tissue causing severe abdominal pain,
diarrhea, fatigue, malnutrition and weight loss. While there is no
known specific cure for inflammatory bowel disease, therapies can
greatly reduce the intensity of symptoms to a great extent. If left
untreated, the condition can be both painful and debilitating, and lead
to life-threatening complications. Gastroenterology medical billing
and coding is a real challenge due to many code choices and rules
related to reporting this inflammatory bowel disease.
Gastroenterologists and other physicians treating this condition need
to be familiar with the related ICD-10 codes. Outsourcing medical
coding to an experienced service provider is a reliable strategy to
ensure accurate coding.
Reports suggest that Crohn's disease affects about 780,000 people in
the United States. The condition affects both men and women equally
and can occur at any time, usually in the age range of 15-35 years. It
is estimated that up to 20 percent of people with Crohn’s have a blood

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relative who has inflammatory bowel disease. The exact cause of this
disease remains unknown. A wide range of factors such as diet, stress,
heredity, malfunctioning immune system, cigarette smoking and usage
of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications happen to play an
active role in its development.
What Are the Common Symptoms?
Generally, the symptoms of this bowel disease start in childhood or
early adulthood and can range from mild to severe. Also, there may be
times when people experience no signs and symptoms (remission).
Most common symptoms include –
 Reduced appetite and weight loss
 Mouth sores
 Fever
 Fatigue
 Diarrhea
 Blood in your stool
 Abdominal pain and cramping
 Pain or drainage near or around the anus due to inflammation
from a tunnel into the skin (fistula)
 Feeling as if your bowels aren’t empty after a bowel movement
 Feeling a frequent need for bowel movement
The symptoms may become more severe as the disease progresses.
People with severe Crohns disease may experience several additional
symptoms like - inflammation of skin, eyes and joints, delayed growth
or sexual development, and inflammation of the liver or bile ducts.

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Early detection and diagnosis can help avoid severe complications such
as anal fissure, ulcers, chronic bowel obstruction, fistula, colon cancer
and other health problems associated with the condition.
Treating Crohn’s Disease – Know the Options
There is no single test to diagnose Crohn's disease. Physicians are
likely to use a combination of techniques to help confirm a diagnosis of
the condition. Various types of blood tests like fecal occult blood test
and tests for anemia or infection will be done. In addition, several
diagnostic imaging tests– Colonoscopy, Computerized tomography
(CT), Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), Capsule endoscopy and
Balloon-assisted enteroscopy--may be conducted to confirm the
symptoms.
There is currently no specific cure for Crohn’s disease and no single
treatment that effectively works for everyone. A wide range of
treatment modalities are incorporated to help reduce the inflammation
and other related symptoms of the condition. Initial treatment starts
with anti-inflammatory drugs such as Corticosteroids (such as
prednisone and budesonide) and Oral 5-aminosalicylates like
sulfasalazine (Azulfidine). Immune system suppressors like –
Azathioprine and mercaptopurine, Methotrexate (Trexall), Natalizumab
(Tysabri) and vedolizumab (Entyvio) also help reduce inflammation.
Other medications include antibiotics like ciprofloxacin (Cipro) and
metronidazole (Flagyl), pain relievers (like ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin IB,
others), naproxen sodium), iron supplements, Vitamin B-12 shots, and
Calcium and vitamin D supplements. In addition, physicians will also

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recommend a nutrition therapy (a special diet given via a feeding tube
or nutrients injected into a vein) and combine it with other medications
to reduce inflammation. If any of the above treatment modalities
(including lifestyle changes, diet and medications) do not relieve your
signs and symptoms, physicians may recommend surgery as a last
option.
Gastroenterologists and other specialists providing treatment for
Crohn’s disease need to be adequately reimbursed for their services.
For this, the diagnosis must be carefully documented using the
appropriate medical codes. Medical billing and coding services
offered by reliable providers can help physicians use the correct codes
for their medical billing purposes.
ICD-10 codes for Crohn’s Disease
K50 - Crohn's disease [regional enteritis]
K50.0 - Crohn's disease of small intestine
 K50.00 - Crohn's disease of small intestine, without
complications
K50.01 - Crohn's disease of small intestine with complications
 K50.011 - Crohn's disease of small intestine with rectal bleeding
 K50.012 - Crohn's disease of small intestine with intestinal
obstruction
 K50.013 - Crohn's disease of small intestine with fistula
 K50.014 - Crohn's disease of small intestine with abscess
 K50.018 - Crohn's disease of small intestine with other
complication

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 K50.019 - Crohn's disease of small intestine with unspecified
complications
K50.1 - Crohn's disease of large intestine
 K50.10 - Crohn's disease of large intestine, without
complications
K50.11 - Crohn's disease of large intestine with complications
 K50.111 - Crohn's disease of large intestine with rectal bleeding
 K50.112 - Crohn's disease of large intestine with intestinal
obstruction
 K50.113 - Crohn's disease of large intestine with fistula
 K50.114 - Crohn's disease of large intestine with abscess
 K50.118 - Crohn's disease of large intestine with other
complication
 K50.119 - Crohn's disease of large intestine with unspecified
complications
K50.8 - Crohn's disease of both small and large intestine
 K50.80 - Crohn's disease of both small and large intestine,
without complications
K50.81 - Crohn's disease of both small and large intestine with
complications
 K50.811 - Crohn's disease of both small and large intestine with
rectal bleeding
 K50.812 - Crohn's disease of both small and large intestine with
intestinal obstruction

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 K50.813 - Crohn's disease of both small and large intestine with
fistula
 K50.814 - Crohn's disease of both small and large intestine with
abscess
 K50.818 - Crohn's disease of both small and large intestine with
other complication
 K50.819 - Crohn's disease of both small and large intestine with
unspecified complications
K50.9 - Crohn's disease, unspecified
 K50.90 - Crohn's disease, unspecified, without complications
K50.91 - Crohn's disease, unspecified, with complications
 K50.911 - Crohn's disease, unspecified, with rectal bleeding
 K50.912 - Crohn's disease, unspecified, with intestinal
obstruction
 K50.913 - Crohn's disease, unspecified, with fistula
 K50.914 - Crohn's disease, unspecified, with abscess
 K50.918 - Crohn's disease, unspecified, with other complication
 K50.919 - Crohn's disease, unspecified, with unspecified
complications
Incorporating small but significant changes in your diet and lifestyle
may help control Crohn’s disease symptoms and lengthen the time
between flare-ups. Intake of certain foods and beverages can
aggravate your signs and symptoms, especially during a flare-up. It is
important to limit or stop consuming dairy food products, high fat
spicy foods, caffeine and alcohol as these may make your signs and

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symptoms worse. In addition, practicing good exercise regime and
reducing stress can reduce the severity of your symptoms and cut
down flare-ups.
Medical coding for inflammatory bowel disease can be intricate.
However, outsourcing these tasks to a reliable and established
medical billing and coding company (that provides the services of
AAPC-certified coding specialists) can help healthcare practices with
correct and timely medical billing and claims submission.