AAPC releases code translator tool

You’ll be happy to add this code translator to your collection of ICD-10 tools. The American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC) released on October 20 a free ICD-10-CM online code conversion tool, which you can use to map ICD-9-CM codes to ICD-10-CM codes. The tool is based on the General Equivalency Mapping files CMS has posted on its Web site.

It’s incredibly easy to use the tool. First, you indicate whether you want to convert from ICD-9 to ICD-10, or from ICD-10 to ICD-9. Then you simply type in the code you want to look up.

For some codes, you’ll get fairly simple translations. Consider the following examples:

• When you look up ICD-9-CM code 277.81 (Primary carnitine deficiency), you get ICD-10 code E71.41 (Primary carnitine deficiency).
• When you look up ICD-9-CM code 577.2 (Cyst and pseudocyst of pancreas), you get ICD-10 codes K86.2 (Cyst of pancreas) and K86.3 (Pseudocyst of pancreas).

For other codes, the translations are more complex. When you look up ICD-9-CM code 424.0 (Mitral valve disorders), you get the following ICD-10 codes:

• I34.0 (Nonrheumatic mitral [valve] insufficiency)
• I34.1 (Nonrheumatic mitral [valve] prolapse)
• I34.2 (Nonrheumatic mitral [valve] stenosis)
• I34.8 (Other nonrheumatic mitral valve disorders)
• I34.9 (Nonrheumatic mitral valve disorder, unspecified)

As a disclaimer, the AAPC advises those using the tool to keep in mind that while many ICD-9 codes map directly to ICD-10 codes, some may require a clinical analysis to determine which code(s) should be selected for the appropriate mapping.

So give it a try, and post a comment to let us know what you think about the AAPC’s tool. Happy mapping!