A05.5

What This Code Means

This is a serious food poisoning caused by eating contaminated seafood or shellfish infected with Vibrio vulnificus bacteria. The infection can cause severe illness with symptoms like vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, and in severe cases, sepsis or wound infections.

Coding Tips

• •Verify the source of infection is foodborne (typically raw or undercooked shellfish, especially oysters) to distinguish from other Vibrio vulnificus infections coded elsewhere
• •Document the specific manifestations (gastroenteritis, septicemia, wound infection) as secondary diagnoses, as A05.5 specifically indicates the foodborne route of transmission