The FPIES Foundation is excited that the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) now recognizes Food Protein-Induced Enterocolitis Syndrome
(FPIES), and has appointed it with diagnostic code K52.21, among allergic
digestive diseases. This is a step that has the building blocks to make
diagnosis and medical/formula coverage easier for a lot of children and their
families and was supported by The FPIES Foundation. We thank Dr.Anna
Nowak-Wegryzn (Founding member of The FPIES Foundation Medical Advisory Board
member) and I-FPIES for their role in this initiative.
What is an ICD-10 code and what
does it mean? ICD is an acronym
that stands for International Classification of Disease and the #10 is because
this is the 10th revision.
This ever growing and changing list is maintained by the World HealthOrganization (WHO). WHO defines ICD as, “. . .The standard
diagnostic tool for epidemiology, health management and clinical purposes. This
includes the analysis of the general health situation of population groups. It
is used to monitor the incidence and prevalence of diseases and other health
problems”.
Simply
stated, ICD codes are utilized medically for precise tracking and quicker
analyzing of a diagnosis, under its specific code. For FPIES, this can
help with research to study patterns of the diagnosis, track complications, and
treatment outcomes. ICD codes are
utilized in health services looking for patterns in such things as quality and
access of care, as well as quality of life. Insurance companies also utilize
this code in classification for payments of services and coverage of
prescriptions related to the diagnosis. For FPIES, this can help insurance
companies in deciding to include formula prescriptions to be paid and/or
reimbursed. (***Please note, it is not an
automatic coverage by insurance or government medical aid). The ICD coding
is an important piece of health care operations which includes health services
and insurance reimbursements, in addition to medical research.
- K tells us the chapter of the classification it is in: “Diseases of the Gastrointestinal System”
- 52 is where it fits along this category. 52 being “Other non-infective gastroenteritis and colitis” and,
- .2 is “Allergic and dietetic gastroenteritis and colitis” and finally,
- 1 added gives it its specific Food Protein-Induced Enterocolitis classification.
In the future, there could be
additional numbers to further define sub-classes within this diagnosis code.
Additional codes to include the other known allergic/food protein induced gastrointestinal disorders will be added as
well.
Establishment of an ICD code for FPIES is an important step
in further defining this diagnosis and increasing its visibility to enable
increased support and care for children, and their families, living with this
diagnosis. We recognize there is much
more work to be done to assure all children along the spectrum of this
diagnosis have this same access to adequate support and care and look forward
to this continued work in collaboration with our medical advisory board and
this community.
This post was written by the Executive Board of The FPIES Foundation
.
