2025 ICD-10-CM code A21.8
This code represents other forms of tularemia not otherwise specified.
No specific modifiers are generally applicable to this diagnosis code.
The medical necessity for using A21.8 is established by the confirmed diagnosis of tularemia through appropriate laboratory testing and the clinical findings that do not fit the criteria for other, more specific tularemia codes.
The provider is responsible for diagnosing tularemia based on the patient's symptoms, exposure history, physical examination findings, and laboratory test results.Treatment typically involves antibiotics. The provider should also educate the patient about preventing future infections.
- Certain infectious and parasitic diseases (A00-B99)
- A21 - Tularemia A21.8 - Other forms of tularemia
In simple words: This code indicates that you have a less common type of tularemia, sometimes called rabbit fever.Tularemia is an infection you can get from animals like rabbits or rodents, often through a bite from an insect like a tick or deerfly.Your doctor has determined that your infection doesn't fit the typical patterns of tularemia.
Tularemia is a bacterial infection caused by Francisella tularensis. This code (A21.8) is used when the patient presents with a form of tularemia that is not classified under the more specific A21 subcategories (e.g., ulceroglandular, oculoglandular, pulmonary, gastrointestinal, or generalized tularemia).Symptoms can vary depending on the route of infection but may include fever, chills, headache, muscle aches, and localized skin ulcers or swollen lymph nodes. Diagnosis is typically confirmed through laboratory tests like blood cultures or serological tests.
Example 1: A patient presents with fever, fatigue, and swollen lymph nodes but no obvious skin ulcer.Laboratory tests confirm tularemia, but it does not fit the presentation of other classified forms, so A21.8 is used., A patient develops an unusual systemic infection after handling a dead rabbit.Blood cultures identify F. tularensis. The infection does not localize to a specific organ system, so A21.8 is appropriate., A patient with known exposure to ticks develops a prolonged fever and malaise.After other causes are ruled out, tularemia is confirmed by serological testing. Due to the atypical presentation, A21.8 is used.
Documentation should include details of the patient's symptoms, history of potential exposure to infected animals or vectors (ticks, deerflies), laboratory findings confirming the diagnosis of tularemia, and the specific characteristics that distinguish it from other forms of tularemia.
- Payment Status: Active
- Modifier TC rule: Not applicable
- Specialties:Infectious disease, Internal medicine, Family medicine, Emergency medicine
- Place of Service:Inpatient Hospital, Outpatient Hospital, Office, Emergency Room - Hospital, Telehealth Provided in Patient’s Home, Telehealth Provided Other than in Patient’s Home