2025 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:

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, 2024 through September 30, 2025.

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.

Code Classification

Approximate Synonyms

The following list of clinical terms are approximate synonyms, alternative descriptions, or common phrases that might be used by patients, healthcare providers, or medical coders to describe the same condition. These synonyms and related diagnosis terms are often used when searching for an ICD-10 code, especially when the exact medical terminology is unclear. Whether you're looking for lay terms, similar diagnosis names, or common language alternatives, this list can help guide you to the correct ICD-10 classification.

  • 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
  • Essential hypertension
  • Good hypertension control
  • Grange syndrome
  • Headache due to arterial hypertension
  • Hemorrhagic cerebral infarction
  • Hemorrhagic cerebral infarction due to hypertension
  • Hemorrhagic infarction
  • 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
  • Increased blood pressure
  • Increased blood pressure
  • 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 Classifications group individual ICD-10-CM diagnosis codes into broader, clinically meaningful categories. These categories help simplify complex data by organizing related conditions under common clinical themes.

They are especially useful for data analysis, reporting, and clinical decision-making. Even when diagnosis codes differ, similar conditions can be grouped together based on their clinical relevance. Each category is assigned a unique CCSR code that represents a specific clinical concept, often tied to a body system or medical specialty.

Essential hypertension

CCSR Code: CIR007

Inpatient Default: Y - Yes, default inpatient assignment for principal diagnosis or first-listed diagnosis.

Outpatient Default: Y - Yes, default outpatient assignment for principal diagnosis or first-listed diagnosis.

Clinical Information

  • Hypertensive Crisis

    a severe, acute increase in blood pressure that may result in stroke or myocardial ischemia.
  • 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.

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 errors and inconsistencies in ICD-10-CM diagnosis coding that can affect Medicare claim validity. These Medicare code edits help medical coders and billing professionals determine when a diagnosis code is not appropriate as a principal diagnosis, does not meet coverage criteria. Use this list to verify whether a code is valid for Medicare billing and to avoid claim rejections or denials due to diagnosis coding issues.

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

Below are the ICD-9 codes that most closely match this ICD-10 code, based on the General Equivalence Mappings (GEMs). This ICD-10 to ICD-9 crosswalk tool is helpful for coders who need to reference legacy diagnosis codes for audits, historical claims, or approximate code comparisons.

Malignant hypertension

ICD-9-CM: 401.0

Approximate Flag - The approximate mapping means this ICD-10 code does not have an exact ICD-9 equivalent. The matched code is the closest available option, but it may not fully capture the original diagnosis or clinical intent.

Benign hypertension

ICD-9-CM: 401.1

Approximate Flag - The approximate mapping means this ICD-10 code does not have an exact ICD-9 equivalent. The matched code is the closest available option, but it may not fully capture the original diagnosis or clinical intent.

Hypertension NOS

ICD-9-CM: 401.9

Approximate Flag - The approximate mapping means this ICD-10 code does not have an exact ICD-9 equivalent. The matched code is the closest available option, but it may not fully capture the original diagnosis or clinical intent.

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.

Controlling High Blood Pressure

High Priority: YES

Measure Type: Intermediateoutcome

Submission Methods: Claims, Electronic Health Record, Cms Web Interface, Registry

Description: Percentage 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.

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. They 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
Elevated 120 - 129 and Less than 80
High Blood Pressure Stage 1 130 - 139 or 80 - 89
High Blood Pressure Stage 2 140 or higher or 90 or higher
Hypertensive Crisis (dangerously high blood pressure - seek medical care right away) Higher than 180 and Higher than 120

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.