Winter Woes

by Dianna Foley, RHIA, CHPS, CCS 


Test your ICD-10-CM external cause coding skills with this short scenario.

The Klutz family was enjoying a fun-filled, long weekend, winter get-away.  The family had driven to Mount Hightop where there were activities for all ages.  Everything was going well until the last afternoon, when true to form, each child suffered some type of injury. 

The first injury occurred when the oldest son, Egon, ran into a tree while skiing down the mountain.  It was determined by a physician on call that he sustained a concussion, but luckily had not suffered any loss of consciousness. 

Next, the middle child, Peter chipped a tooth after being hit in the mouth with a hockey puck.  He was playing ice hockey in the local hockey rink with other children.  As goalie, he deflected the puck with his glove but instead of going into the net, the puck hit him in the mouth.  A local dentist applied a sealant with instructions to see his family dentist upon return home.

Janine was volunteering at a luncheon in a local restaurant when she burned her tongue while drinking a mug of hot cocoa. 

Young Raymond, meanwhile, suffered a twisted right ankle, while attempting to snowboard.  The on-call physician diagnosed a tibiofibular sprain and recommended ice and elevation of the leg.

Last, but not least, little Dana ended up with superficial frostbite on fingers of both hands as she was outside in the bitter cold building a snowman on the sidewalk leading up to the resort.  She’d forgotten her gloves in her jacket pocket until her fingers were hurting, and when she pulled them out, she decided the snowman needed them more than she did.  The nurse practitioner placed Dana’s hands in a sink of warm water, and instructed her not to rub them together.  Dana’s skin was not discolored, and she indicated she still had feeling in the digits, so the NP thought this a mild case of frostbite expecting a full recovery after rewarming.

Mr. and Mrs. Klutz then packed up the children and headed down Mount Hilltop to return home, grateful that the winter woes were over…at least until next year!


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