What are Lactic Acidosis ICD-10-CM Codes?
Lactic acidosis is a pathologic condition resulting from the accumulation of lactic acid in the body, typically due to acute metabolic acidosis or impaired cellular respiration. It can be triggered by underlying metabolic diseases, diabetes, heart failure, sepsis, and various metabolic disorders. In the ICD-10-CM system, several diagnosis codes are used to classify lactic acidosis, metabolic acidosis, and associated acid-base imbalances for documentation and billing purposes.
Each of the following ICD-10 codes helps healthcare providers accurately capture cases of lactic acidosis, unspecified acidosis, and acid-base disturbances in medical records:
- E87.21 – Acute metabolic acidosis: This code is assigned for cases of acute metabolic acidosis, a condition involving a rapid buildup of metabolic acid in the bloodstream. It is often caused by lactic acid accumulation, diabetic ketoacidosis, or acid-base imbalance due to severe illness. This includes conditions such as respiratory failure with hypercapnia, heart failure, and diabetes.
- E87.20 – Acidosis, unspecified: Used when the cause or type of acidosis is not clearly defined, this code covers unspecified lactic acidosis and lactic acidosis NOS. It is a billable non-specific code and may apply when a full diagnosis is pending, when the provider uses general terms, or when the acid accumulation does not fit into a more specific category.
- R74.0 – Nonspecific elevation of levels of transaminase and lactic acid dehydrogenase (LDH): This code documents nonspecific elevation in enzyme levels, such as LDH, which may signal lactic acid buildup in the absence of clear clinical context. While not directly diagnostic of lactic acidosis, it may support the presence of metabolic disorders or lactic acidosis when correlated with symptoms or lab findings.
- E87.4 – Mixed disorder of acid-base balance: Used for patients with combined acid-base disorders, this code includes situations where metabolic acid buildup coexists with respiratory failure or other forms of acidosis. It reflects complex clinical presentations, such as metabolic acidosis NOS paired with carbon dioxide retention or other acidosis.