I70.211

Billable

Atherosclerosis of native arteries of extremities with intermittent claudication, right leg

HCC Category Mapping

V24HCC 108 — Vascular Disease

0.297

ESRDHCC 108 — Vascular Disease

0.000

What This Code Means

Hardening of blood vessels in the right leg causing leg pain or cramping during walking that goes away with rest.

Coding Tips

•Intermittent claudication is characterized by reproducible leg pain with activity that resolves with rest; ensure documentation supports this pattern
•Verify laterality is specifically documented as right leg to justify this code rather than the unspecified version

Clinical Significance

Atherosclerosis of native arteries of the extremities with intermittent claudication indicates peripheral arterial disease severe enough to cause exertional leg pain due to inadequate blood supply during ambulation. Intermittent claudication significantly impairs functional capacity and quality of life and serves as a clinical marker for systemic atherosclerotic burden with increased risk of myocardial infarction and stroke. Proper documentation of the claudication component is essential as it specifies the clinical severity stage of peripheral arterial disease.

Documentation Requirements

✓Documentation of the specific arterial site affected by atherosclerosis
✓Documentation that the patient experiences exertional leg pain that is relieved by rest (intermittent claudication)
✓Specification that the atherosclerosis involves native (not grafted or bypassed) arteries
✓Affected leg laterality must be documented (right, left, bilateral)
✓Ankle-brachial index or other objective vascular testing results
✓Walking distance or functional limitation details
✓Treatment plan including exercise therapy, pharmacotherapy, and consideration for revascularization

Commonly Confused Codes

I70.20x — Unspecified atherosclerosis of native arteries of extremities; use when no symptoms such as claudication or rest pain are documented I70.22x — Atherosclerosis of native arteries of extremities with rest pain; use when pain occurs at rest, indicating more severe critical limb ischemia I70.31x — Atherosclerosis of unspecified type of bypass graft of extremities with intermittent claudication; use when the affected vessel is a bypass graft I73.9 — Peripheral vascular disease, unspecified; a less specific alternative that should be avoided when atherosclerosis with claudication is documented M79.604-M79.606 — Pain in leg; use for non-vascular leg pain; do not confuse vascular claudication with musculoskeletal pain

Code Hierarchy

└I70Atherosclerosis └I70.2Atherosclerosis of native arteries of the extremities └I70.21Atherosclerosis of native arteries of extremities with intermittent claudication └I70.211Atherosclerosis of native arteries of extremities with intermittent claudication, right leg

└I70.211Atherosclerosis of native arteries of extremities with intermittent claudication, right leg