2024 ICD-10-CM Diagnosis Code Z57.1

Occupational exposure to radiation

ICD-10-CM Code:
Z57.1
ICD-10 Code for:
Occupational exposure to radiation
Is Billable?
Yes - Valid for Submission
Code Navigator:

Code Classification

  • Factors influencing health status and contact with health services
    (Z00–Z99)
    • Persons with potential health hazards related to socioeconomic and psychosocial circumstances
      (Z55-Z65)
      • Occupational exposure to risk factors
        (Z57)

Z57.1 is a billable diagnosis code used to specify a medical diagnosis of occupational exposure to radiation. The code is valid during the current fiscal year for the submission of HIPAA-covered transactions from October 01, 2023 through September 30, 2024. The code is exempt from present on admission (POA) reporting for inpatient admissions to general acute care hospitals.

This code describes a circumstance which influences the patient's health status but not a current illness or injury. The code is unacceptable as a principal diagnosis.

Approximate Synonyms

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

  • Effects of occupational exposure to radiation
  • Occupational exposure to radiation
  • Occupational injury

Clinical Classification

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:

  • Unacceptable principal diagnosis - There are selected codes that describe a circumstance which influences an individual's health status but not a current illness or injury, or codes that are not specific manifestations but may be due to an underlying cause. These codes are considered unacceptable as a principal diagnosis.

Present on Admission (POA)

Z57.1 is exempt from POA reporting - The Present on Admission (POA) indicator is used for diagnosis codes included in claims involving inpatient admissions to general acute care hospitals. POA indicators must be reported to CMS on each claim to facilitate the grouping of diagnoses codes into the proper Diagnostic Related Groups (DRG). CMS publishes a listing of specific diagnosis codes that are exempt from the POA reporting requirement. Review other POA exempt codes here.

CMS POA Indicator Options and Definitions

POA IndicatorReason for CodeCMS will pay the CC/MCC DRG?
YDiagnosis was present at time of inpatient admission.YES
NDiagnosis was not present at time of inpatient admission.NO
UDocumentation insufficient to determine if the condition was present at the time of inpatient admission.NO
WClinically undetermined - unable to clinically determine whether the condition was present at the time of inpatient admission.YES
1Unreported/Not used - Exempt from POA reporting. NO

Convert Z57.1 to ICD-9-CM

  • ICD-9-CM Code: V62.1 - Adverse eff-work environ
    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.

Patient Education


Occupational Health

Occupational health problems occur at work or because of the kind of work you do. These problems can include:

  • Cuts, fractures (broken bones), and sprains and strains
  • Loss of limbs
  • Repetitive motion disorders
  • Hearing problems caused by exposure to noise
  • Vision problems
  • Illness caused by breathing, touching, or swallowing unsafe substances
  • Illness caused by exposure to radiation
  • Exposure to germs in health care settings

Good job safety and prevention practices can reduce your risk of these problems. Try to stay fit, reduce stress, set up your work area properly, and use the right equipment and gear.


[Learn More in MedlinePlus]

Radiation Exposure

What is radiation?

Radiation is energy. It travels in the form of energy waves or high-speed particles. Radiation can occur naturally or be man-made. There are two types:

  • Non-ionizing radiation, which includes radio waves, cell phones, microwaves, infrared radiation and visible light
  • Ionizing radiation, which includes ultraviolet radiation, radon, x-rays, and gamma rays

What are the sources of radiation exposure?

Background radiation is all around us all the time. Most of it forms naturally from minerals. These radioactive minerals are in the ground, soil, water, and even our bodies. Background radiation can also come from outer space and the sun. Other sources are man-made, such as x-rays, radiation therapy to treat cancer, and electrical power lines.

What are the health effects of radiation exposure?

Radiation has been around us throughout our evolution. So our bodies are designed to deal with the low levels we're exposed to every day. But too much radiation can damage tissues by changing cell structure and damaging DNA. This can cause serious health problems, including cancer.

The amount of damage that exposure to radiation can cause depends on several factors, including:

  • The type of radiation
  • The dose (amount) of radiation
  • How you were exposed, such as through skin contact, swallowing or breathing it in, or having rays pass through your body
  • Where the radiation concentrates in the body and how long it stays there
  • How sensitive your body is to radiation. A fetus is most vulnerable to the effects of radiation. Infants, children, older adults, pregnant women, and people with compromised immune systems are more vulnerable to health effects than healthy adults.

Being exposed to a lot of radiation over a short period of time, such as from a radiation emergency, can cause skin burns. It may also lead to acute radiation syndrome (ARS, or "radiation sickness"). The symptoms of ARS include headache and diarrhea. They usually start within hours. Those symptoms will go away and the person will seem healthy for a little while. But then they will get sick again. How soon they get sick again, which symptoms they have, and how sick they get depends on the amount of radiation they received. In some cases, ARS causes death in the following days or weeks.

Exposure to low levels of radiation in the environment does not cause immediate health effects. But it can slightly increase your overall risk of cancer.

What are the treatments for acute radiation sickness?

Before they start treatment, health care professionals need to figure out how much radiation your body absorbed. They will ask about your symptoms, do blood tests, and may use a device that measures radiation. They also try get more information about the exposure, such as what type of radiation it was, how far away you were from the source of the radiation, and how long you were exposed.

Treatment focuses on reducing and treating infections, preventing dehydration, and treating injuries and burns. Some people may need treatments that help the bone marrow recover its function. If you were exposed to certain types of radiation, your provider may give you a treatment that limits or removes the contamination that is inside your body. You may also get treatments for your symptoms.

How can radiation exposure be prevented?

There are steps you can take to prevent or reduce radiation exposure:

  • If your health care provider recommends a test that uses radiation, ask about its risks and benefits. In some cases, you may be able to have a different test that does not use radiation. But if you do need a test that uses radiation, do some research into the local imaging facilities. Find one that monitors and uses techniques to reduce the doses they are giving patients.
  • Reduce electromagnetic radiation exposure from your cell phone. At this time, scientific evidence has not found a link between cell phone use and health problems in humans. More research is needed to be sure. But if you still have concerns, you can reduce how much time you spend on your phone. You can also use speaker mode or a headset to place more distance between your head and the cell phone.
  • If you live in a house, test the radon levels, and if you need to, get a radon reduction system.
  • During a radiation emergency, get inside a building to take shelter. Stay inside, with all of the windows and doors shut. Stay tuned to and follow the advice of emergency responders and officials.

Environmental Protection Agency


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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.