Are International Classification of Diseases Codes in Electronic Health Records Useful in Identifying Obesity as a Risk Factor When Evaluating Surgical Outcomes?. Issue 4 (October 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Goode, Victoria; Rovnyak, Virginia; Hinton, Ivora; Phillips, Elayne; Merwin, Elizabeth
• Is Part Of: Health care manager. Volume 35:Issue 4(2016)
• Publication Date: 2016-10
• Subjects: electronic records -- ICD-9 codes -- obesity -- patient safety -- surgical outcomes; Health services administration -- Periodicals; Health services administration -- United States -- Periodicals; Health planning -- Periodicals; Hospitals -- Administration -- Periodicals; Health services administrators -- Periodicals; 362.1068
• DOI: 10.1097/HCM.0000000000000112
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1525-5794

Abstract

Abstract : This research addresses an important methodological issue on patient safety and obesity for the purposes of examining clinical and administrative data for the reliability of using International Classification of Diseases ( ICD ) diagnoses codes alone to reliably identify obesity as a comorbidity and risk factor in care and management. The findings of this research confirm ICD codes for the obese surgical populations were underutilized. Despite more than 70% of patients classified as overweight or obese, ICD-9 codes for obesity were assigned in less than 10% of the overall sample. Patients in the extreme category of obesity (body mass index [BMI] >40 kg/m 2 ) were more likely to have a corresponding ICD-9 code compared with patients in the BMI range of 25 to 40 kg/m 2 . International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision coding for obesity was underutilized in patients with a BMI of greater than 25 kg/m 2 . The associated health risks, costs, and potential adverse events associated with obesity make it imperative to continue to study the barriers to coding.