2024 ICD-10-CM Diagnosis Code I10

Essential (primary) hypertension

ICD-10-CM Code:
I10
ICD-10 Code for:
Essential (primary) hypertension
Is Billable?
Yes - Valid for Submission
Chronic Condition Indicator: [1]
Chronic
Code Navigator:

Code Classification

  • Diseases of the circulatory system
    (I00–I99)
    • Hypertensive diseases
      (I10-I1A)
      • Essential hypertension (I10)
        (primary)

I10 is a billable diagnosis code used to specify a medical diagnosis of essential (primary) hypertension. The code is valid during the current fiscal year for the submission of HIPAA-covered transactions from October 01, 2023 through September 30, 2024.

This code is not usually sufficient justification for admission to an acute care hospital when used as a principal diagnosis.

The code is commonly used in family practice, internal medicine, cardiology , ob/gyn medical specialties to specify clinical concepts such as hypertension.

The code is linked to some Quality Measures as part of Medicare's Quality Payment Program (QPP). When this code is used as part of a patient's medical record the following Quality Measures might apply: Controlling High Blood Pressure.

Approximate Synonyms

The following clinical terms are approximate synonyms or lay terms that might be used to identify the correct diagnosis code:

  • Benign essential hypertension
  • Benign hypertension
  • Brachydactyly and arterial hypertension syndrome
  • Brachydactyly syndrome type E
  • Dementia due to hemorrhagic cerebral infarction due to hypertension
  • Dementia due to hypertensive encephalopathy
  • Dementia due to metabolic abnormality
  • Diastolic hypertension
  • Diastolic hypertension
  • Diastolic hypertension and systolic hypertension
  • Elevated blood pressure
  • Elevated blood pressure
  • Essential hypertension
  • Good hypertension control
  • Grange syndrome
  • Headache due to arterial hypertension
  • Hereditary dysplasia of blood vessel
  • High-renin essential hypertension
  • Hypertension monitoring offer default
  • Hypertension monitoring status
  • Hypertension stage 1
  • Hypertension stage 2
  • Hypertension with albuminuria
  • Hypertensive complication
  • Hypertensive crisis
  • Hypertensive crisis
  • Hypertensive disorder
  • Hypertensive emergency
  • Hypertensive emergency
  • Hypertensive optic neuropathy
  • Hypertensive treatment changed
  • Intermittent hypertension
  • Intermittent hypertension
  • Labile diastolic hypertension
  • Labile essential hypertension
  • Labile systemic arterial hypertension
  • Low-renin essential hypertension
  • Malignant essential hypertension
  • Malignant hypertension
  • Malignant hypertension
  • Martorell ulcer of lower leg
  • Martorell ulcer of lower limb
  • Rebound hypertension
  • Supine hypertension
  • Sustained diastolic hypertension
  • Systolic essential hypertension
  • Systolic hypertension
  • Systolic hypertension
  • Transient hypertension

Clinical Classification

Clinical Information

  • Essential Hypertension

    hypertension that occurs without known cause, or preexisting renal disease. associated polymorphisms for a number of genes have been identified, including agt, gnb3, and ece1. omim: 145500
  • Benign Essential Hypertension

    a condition of mild to moderate high blood pressure that has no identifiable cause.
  • Diastolic Hypertension

    hypertension characterized diastolic blood pressure greater than 90 mmhg on two occasions.
  • Systolic Hypertension

    abnormally high systolic blood pressure.
  • Malignant Hypertension

    severe hypertension that is characterized by rapid onset of extremely high blood pressure.
  • Malignant Essential Hypertension

    essential hypertension with rapid progression to severe high blood pressure, papilledema, and renal failure.

Replaced Code

This code was replaced in the 2024 ICD-10-CM code set with the code(s) listed below. The National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) has published an update to the ICD-10-CM diagnosis codes which became effective October 1, 2023. This code was replaced for the FY 2024 (October 1, 2023 - September 30, 2024).


  • I1A.0 - Resistant hypertension

Tabular List of Diseases and Injuries

The following annotation back-references are applicable to this diagnosis code. The Tabular List of Diseases and Injuries is a list of ICD-10-CM codes, organized "head to toe" into chapters and sections with coding notes and guidance for inclusions, exclusions, descriptions and more.


Includes

Includes
This note appears immediately under a three character code title to further define, or give examples of, the content of the category.
  • high blood pressure
  • hypertension (arterial) (benign) (essential) (malignant) (primary) (systemic)

Type 1 Excludes

Type 1 Excludes
A type 1 excludes note is a pure excludes note. It means "NOT CODED HERE!" An Excludes1 note indicates that the code excluded should never be used at the same time as the code above the Excludes1 note. An Excludes1 is used when two conditions cannot occur together, such as a congenital form versus an acquired form of the same condition.
  • hypertensive disease complicating pregnancy, childbirth and the puerperium O10 O11 O13 O16

Type 2 Excludes

Type 2 Excludes
A type 2 excludes note represents "Not included here". An excludes2 note indicates that the condition excluded is not part of the condition represented by the code, but a patient may have both conditions at the same time. When an Excludes2 note appears under a code, it is acceptable to use both the code and the excluded code together, when appropriate.
  • essential primary hypertension involving vessels of brain I60 I69
  • essential primary hypertension involving vessels of eye H35.0

Index to Diseases and Injuries References

The following annotation back-references for this diagnosis code are found in the injuries and diseases index. The Index to Diseases and Injuries is an alphabetical listing of medical terms, with each term mapped to one or more ICD-10-CM code(s).

Code Edits

The Medicare Code Editor (MCE) detects and reports errors in the coding of claims data. The following ICD-10-CM Code Edits are applicable to this code:

  • Questionable admission codes - Some diagnoses are not usually sufficient justification for admission to an acute care hospital. For example, if a patient is given code R030 for elevated blood pressure reading, without diagnosis of hypertension, then the patient would have a questionable admission, since elevated blood pressure reading is not normally sufficient justification for admission to a hospital. The following list contains diagnosis codes identified as questionable admission when used.

Convert I10 to ICD-9-CM

  • ICD-9-CM Code: 401.0 - Malignant hypertension
    Approximate Flag - The approximate mapping means there is not an exact match between the ICD-10 and ICD-9 codes and the mapped code is not a precise representation of the original code.
  • ICD-9-CM Code: 401.1 - Benign hypertension
    Approximate Flag - The approximate mapping means there is not an exact match between the ICD-10 and ICD-9 codes and the mapped code is not a precise representation of the original code.
  • ICD-9-CM Code: 401.9 - Hypertension NOS
    Approximate Flag - The approximate mapping means there is not an exact match between the ICD-10 and ICD-9 codes and the mapped code is not a precise representation of the original code.

Quality Payment Program Measures

When code I10 is part of the patient's diagnoses the following Quality Measures apply and affect reimbursement. The objective of Medicare's Quality Measures is to improve patient care by making it more: effective, safe, efficient, patient-centered and equitable.

Quality Measure Description Quality Domain Measure Type High Priority Submission Methods
Controlling High Blood PressurePercentage of patients 18-85 years of age who had a diagnosis of essential hypertension starting before and continuing into, or starting during the first six months of the measurement period, and whose most recent blood pressure was adequately controlled (<140/90mmHg) during the measurement period.Effective Clinical CareIntermediateoutcomeYESClaims, Electronic Health Record, Cms Web Interface, Registry

Patient Education


High Blood Pressure

What is blood pressure?

Blood pressure is the force of your blood pushing against the walls of your arteries. Each time your heart beats, it pumps blood into the arteries. Your blood pressure is highest when your heart beats, pumping the blood. This is called systolic pressure. When your heart is at rest, between beats, your blood pressure falls. This is called diastolic pressure.

Your blood pressure reading uses these two numbers. Usually the systolic number comes before or above the diastolic number. For example, 120/80 means a systolic of 120 and a diastolic of 80.

How is high blood pressure diagnosed?

High blood pressure usually has no symptoms. So the only way to find out if you have it is to get regular blood pressure checks from your health care provider. Your provider will use a gauge, a stethoscope or electronic sensor, and a blood pressure cuff. He or she will take two or more readings at separate appointments before making a diagnosis.

Blood Pressure Category Systolic Blood Pressure Diastolic Blood Pressure
Normal Less than 120 and Less than 80
High Blood Pressure (no other heart risk factors) 140 or higher or 90 or higher
High Blood Pressure (with other heart risk factors, according to some providers) 130 or higher or 80 or higher
Dangerously high blood pressure - seek medical care right away 180 or higher and 120 or higher

For children and teens, the health care provider compares the blood pressure reading to what is normal for other kids who are the same age, height, and sex.

What are the different types of high blood pressure?

There are two main types of high blood pressure: primary and secondary high blood pressure.:

  • Primary, or essential, high blood pressure is the most common type of high blood pressure. For most people who get this kind of blood pressure, it develops over time as you get older.
  • Secondary high blood pressure is caused by another medical condition or use of certain medicines. It usually gets better after you treat that condition or stop taking the medicines that are causing it.

Why do I need to worry about high blood pressure?

When your blood pressure stays high over time, it causes the heart to pump harder and work overtime, possibly leading to serious health problems such as heart attack, stroke, heart failure, and kidney failure.

What are the treatments for high blood pressure?

Treatments for high blood pressure include heart-healthy lifestyle changes and medicines.

You will work with your provider to come up with a treatment plan. It may include only the lifestyle changes. These changes, such as heart-healthy eating and exercise, can be very effective. But sometimes the changes do not control or lower your high blood pressure. Then you may need to take medicine. There are different types of blood pressure medicines. Some people need to take more than one type.

If your high blood pressure is caused by another medical condition or medicine, treating that condition or stopping the medicine may lower your blood pressure.

NIH: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute


[Learn More in MedlinePlus]

Hypertension

Hypertension is abnormally high blood pressure in the arteries, which are the blood vessels that carry blood from the heart to the rest of the body. As the heart beats, it forces blood through the arteries to deliver nutrients and oxygen to the rest of the body. The strength of the blood pushing against the artery walls is blood pressure, which is measured in units called millimeters of mercury (mmHg). The top number in a blood pressure reading is the pressure when the heart pumps (systolic blood pressure), and the bottom number is the pressure between heart beats (diastolic blood pressure). In adults, a normal blood pressure measurement is about 120/80 mmHg. Blood pressure is considered high when the measurement is 130/80 mmHg or greater.

Hypertension usually has no symptoms, and many affected individuals do not know they have the condition. However, hypertension is a major risk factor for heart disease, stroke, kidney failure, and eye problems. When blood pressure is elevated, the heart and arteries have to work harder than normal to pump blood through the body. The extra work thickens the muscles of the heart and arteries and hardens or damages artery walls. As a result, the flow of blood and oxygen to the heart and other organs is reduced. Damage to the heart caused by the extra work and a lack of oxygen causes heart disease. In addition, damage to the arteries increases the risk of blood clots that block the flow of blood to the heart, causing a heart attack, or to the brain, causing a type of stroke known as an ischemic stroke. Another type of stroke, called a hemorrhagic stroke, can occur when a weakened blood vessel in the brain bursts. Damage to blood vessels in the kidneys impairs their ability to filter waste and remove fluid, leading to kidney failure. Problems with blood flow in the arteries of the eyes can lead to vision loss.

In rare cases, dangerously high blood pressure can cause severe headaches, confusion, shortness of breath, chest pain, or nosebleeds.

In about 95 percent of cases, the cause of hypertension is unknown. These cases are classified as essential hypertension. When hypertension results from an underlying condition, such as blood vessel defects that reduce blood flow; kidney disorders, which alter the amount of fluids and salts in the body; or problems with hormone-producing glands called the adrenal glands or the thyroid gland, it is classified as secondary hypertension. Hypertension is a key feature of some rare genetic disorders, including familial hyperaldosteronism, pseudohypoaldosteronism type 2, Liddle syndrome, and tumors known as paragangliomas.


[Learn More in MedlinePlus]

Code History

  • FY 2024 - No Change, effective from 10/1/2023 through 9/30/2024
  • FY 2023 - No Change, effective from 10/1/2022 through 9/30/2023
  • FY 2022 - No Change, effective from 10/1/2021 through 9/30/2022
  • FY 2021 - No Change, effective from 10/1/2020 through 9/30/2021
  • FY 2020 - No Change, effective from 10/1/2019 through 9/30/2020
  • FY 2019 - No Change, effective from 10/1/2018 through 9/30/2019
  • FY 2018 - No Change, effective from 10/1/2017 through 9/30/2018
  • FY 2017 - No Change, effective from 10/1/2016 through 9/30/2017
  • FY 2016 - New Code, effective from 10/1/2015 through 9/30/2016. This was the first year ICD-10-CM was implemented into the HIPAA code set.

Footnotes

[1] Chronic - a chronic condition code indicates a condition lasting 12 months or longer and its effect on the patient based on one or both of the following criteria:

  • The condition results in the need for ongoing intervention with medical products,treatment, services, and special equipment
  • The condition places limitations on self-care, independent living, and social interactions.