ICD-9 Code 980.9

Toxic effect of unspecified alcohol

Not Valid for Submission

980.9 is a legacy non-billable code used to specify a medical diagnosis of toxic effect of unspecified alcohol. This code was replaced on September 30, 2015 by its ICD-10 equivalent.

ICD-9: 980.9
Short Description:Toxic effect alcohol NOS
Long Description:Toxic effect of unspecified alcohol

Convert 980.9 to ICD-10

The following crosswalk between ICD-9 to ICD-10 is based based on the General Equivalence Mappings (GEMS) information:

  • T51.91XA - Toxic effect of unsp alcohol, accidental, init
  • T51.92XA - Toxic effect of unsp alcohol, intentional self-harm, init
  • T51.93XA - Toxic effect of unspecified alcohol, assault, init encntr
  • T51.94XA - Toxic effect of unsp alcohol, undetermined, init encntr

Code Classification

  • Injury and poisoning (800–999)
    • Toxic effects of substances chiefly nonmedicinal as to source (980-989)
      • 980 Toxic effect of alcohol

Information for Medical Professionals

Index to Diseases and Injuries

References found for the code 980.9 in the Index of Diseases and Injuries:


Information for Patients


Alcohol

If you are like many Americans, you drink alcohol at least occasionally. For many people, moderate drinking is probably safe. But drinking less is better for your health than drinking more. And there are some people who should not drink at all.

Because drinking too much can be harmful, it's important to know how alcohol affects you and how much is too much.

How does alcohol affect the body?

Alcohol is a central nervous system depressant. This means that it is a drug that slows down brain activity. It can change your mood, behavior, and self-control. It can cause problems with memory and thinking clearly. Alcohol can also affect your coordination and physical control.

Alcohol also has effects on the other organs in your body. For example, it can raise your blood pressure and heart rate. If you drink too much at once, it could make you throw up.

Why are the effects of alcohol different from person to person?

Alcohol's effects vary from person to person, depending on a variety of factors, including:

  • How much you drank
  • How quickly you drank it
  • The amount of food you ate before drinking
  • Your age
  • Your sex
  • Your race or ethnicity
  • Your physical condition
  • Whether or not you have a family history of alcohol problems

What is moderate drinking?

  • For most women, moderate drinking is no more than one standard drink a day
  • For most men, moderate drinking is no more than two standard drinks a day

Even though moderate drinking may be safe for many people, there are still risks. Moderate drinking can raise the risk of death from certain cancers and heart diseases.

What is a standard drink?

In the United States, a standard drink is one that contains about 14 grams of pure alcohol, which is found in:

  • 12 ounces of beer (5% alcohol content)
  • 5 ounces of wine (12% alcohol content)
  • 1.5 ounces or a "shot" of distilled spirits or liquor (40% alcohol content)

Who should not drink alcohol?

Some people should not drink alcohol at all, including those who:

  • Are recovering from an alcohol use disorder (AUD) or are unable to control the amount they drink
  • Are under age 21
  • Are pregnant or trying to become pregnant
  • Are taking medicines that can interact with alcohol
  • Have medical conditions that get can worse if you drink alcohol
  • Are planning on driving
  • Will be operating machinery

If you have questions about whether it is safe for you to drink, talk with your health care provider.

What is excessive drinking?

Excessive drinking includes binge drinking and heavy alcohol use:

  • Binge drinking is drinking so much at once that your blood alcohol concentration (BAC) level is 0.08% or more. For a man, this usually happens after having 5 or more drinks within a few hours. For a woman, it is after about 4 or more drinks within a few hours.
  • Heavy alcohol use is having having more than 4 drinks on any day for men or more than 3 drinks for women

Binge drinking raises your risk of injuries, car crashes, and alcohol poisoning. It also puts you of becoming violent or being the victim of violence.

Heavy alcohol use over a long period of time may cause health problems such as:

  • Alcohol use disorder
  • Liver diseases, including cirrhosis and fatty liver disease
  • Heart diseases
  • Increased risk for certain cancers
  • Increased risk of injuries

Heavy alcohol use can also cause problems at home, at work, and with friends. But treatment can help.

NIH: National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism


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ICD-9 Footnotes

General Equivalence Map Definitions
The ICD-9 and ICD-10 GEMs are used to facilitate linking between the diagnosis codes in ICD-9-CM and the new ICD-10-CM code set. The GEMs are the raw material from which providers, health information vendors and payers can derive specific applied mappings to meet their needs.

  • Approximate Flag - The approximate flag is on, indicating that the relationship between the code in the source system and the code in the target system is an approximate equivalent.
  • No Map Flag - The no map flag indicates that a code in the source system is not linked to any code in the target system.
  • Combination Flag - The combination flag indicates that more than one code in the target system is required to satisfy the full equivalent meaning of a code in the source system.

Index of Diseases and Injuries Definitions

  • And - The word "and" should be interpreted to mean either "and" or "or" when it appears in a title.
  • Code also note - A "code also" note instructs that two codes may be required to fully describe a condition, but this note does not provide sequencing direction.
  • Code first - Certain conditions have both an underlying etiology and multiple body system manifestations due to the underlying etiology. For such conditions, the ICD-10-CM has a coding convention that requires the underlying condition be sequenced first followed by the manifestation. Wherever such a combination exists, there is a "use additional code" note at the etiology code, and a "code first" note at the manifestation code. These instructional notes indicate the proper sequencing order of the codes, etiology followed by manifestation.
  • Type 1 Excludes Notes - 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.
  • Type 2 Excludes Notes - 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.
  • Includes Notes - This note appears immediately under a three character code title to further define, or give examples of, the content of the category.
  • Inclusion terms - List of terms is included under some codes. These terms are the conditions for which that code is to be used. The terms may be synonyms of the code title, or, in the case of "other specified" codes, the terms are a list of the various conditions assigned to that code. The inclusion terms are not necessarily exhaustive. Additional terms found only in the Alphabetic Index may also be assigned to a code.
  • NEC "Not elsewhere classifiable" - This abbreviation in the Alphabetic Index represents "other specified". When a specific code is not available for a condition, the Alphabetic Index directs the coder to the "other specified” code in the Tabular List.
  • NOS "Not otherwise specified" - This abbreviation is the equivalent of unspecified.
  • See - The "see" instruction following a main term in the Alphabetic Index indicates that another term should be referenced. It is necessary to go to the main term referenced with the "see" note to locate the correct code.
  • See Also - A "see also" instruction following a main term in the Alphabetic Index instructs that there is another main term that may also be referenced that may provide additional Alphabetic Index entries that may be useful. It is not necessary to follow the "see also" note when the original main term provides the necessary code.
  • 7th Characters - Certain ICD-10-CM categories have applicable 7th characters. The applicable 7th character is required for all codes within the category, or as the notes in the Tabular List instruct. The 7th character must always be the 7th character in the data field. If a code that requires a 7th character is not 6 characters, a placeholder X must be used to fill in the empty characters.
  • With - The word "with" should be interpreted to mean "associated with" or "due to" when it appears in a code title, the Alphabetic Index, or an instructional note in the Tabular List. The word "with" in the Alphabetic Index is sequenced immediately following the main term, not in alphabetical order.