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ICD-10-PCS

PROCEDURAL

ICD-10-PCS codes, (International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision, Procedure Coding System) is the new procedure coding system developed by 3M as a replacement for ICD-9-CM, volume 3.  These are used as diagnostic codes, serving as a tool for reporting basic health statics, as well as for indexing/ reporting the following:

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  • medical records

  • medical care review

  • ambulatory / other healthcare programs 

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Due to the table structure of ICD-10-PCS, the specification of many codes can be on one page. Currently, there are about 87,000 codes, which are ONLY used in US hospitals.  

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International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision, Procedure Coding System

SECTIONS

  • Medical and surgical

  • Obstetrics

  • Placement

  • Administration

  • Measurement and monitoring

  • Imaging

  • Nuclear medicine

  • Radiation oncology

  • Osteopathic

  • Physical rehabilitation and diagnostic audiology

  • Extracorporeal assistance and performance

  • Extracorporeal therapies

  • Laboratory

  • Mental health

  • Chiropractic

  • Miscellaneous

  • Substance abuse treatment

FORMAT

7 Alphanumeric Characters 

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PUBLICATION

Created by 3M Health Information Systems; Funded / Mantained by by CMS 

LAYOUT

The ICD-10-PCS manual is divided into an

index, followed by 17 sections of code tables. 

Index

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The Index is located at the beginning of the manual and is an alphabetical list of terms,

which can be used to locate the appropriate

code table. The main terms include root operations, root procedure types, or common names, and thus the index reflects the

structure of the table. 

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The index is based upon the third character, lists anatomic sites, uses device terms, and contains common procedures. It will always provide at

least the first three or four values of the codes, while it will sometimes provide the entire code. 

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It should be noted that the index is used ONLY to assist in locating the tables where the codes are constructed and it does not have to be consulted before proceeding to the tables.  

 

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Code Tables 

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The ICD-10-PCS is divided into 17 sections of Code tables, which are organized by general type procedure. The largest of these sections-- The Medical and Surgical Section-- contains 31 body system values and 31 root operations.

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The first three characters of procedures define each table, while the columns provide the last four characters and rows providing values for each character. 

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Code Format 

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ICD-10-PCS codes are consist of 7 alphanumeric characters. ALL seven characters MUST be specified in order to be a valid code. A character specifies the same type of information in that particular axis of classification when within a defined code range. For each axis, one of 34 possible values can be assigned, including numbers 0-9 and letters of the alphabet, sans the letters "I" and "O".  (These letters are not used, as they are easily confused with numbers "1" and "0.") 

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Code Ranges 

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(Color coded table of code ranges coming soon.) 

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Appendices  

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The back of the manual includes Appendices A-L, which provide valuable references for coding efficiency: 

  • Appendix A: Components of the Medical and Surgical Approach Definitions  

  • Appendix B: Root Operation Definitions 

  • Appendix C: Comparison of Medical and Surgical Root Operations

  • Appendix D: Body Part Key

  • Appendix E: Body Part Definitions

  • Appendix F: Device Key Aggregation Table

  • Appendix G: Device Definitions 

  • Appendix H: Substance Key/ Substance Definitions 

  • Appendix I: Sections B-H Character Definitions 

  • Appendix J: Hospital Acquired Conditions 

  • Appendix K: Coding Exercises and Answers

  • Appendix L: Procedure Combination Tables

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