2026 ICD-10-CM Diagnosis Code F98.9
Unspecified behavioral and emotional disorders with onset usually occurring in childhood and adolescence
- ICD-10-CM Code:
- F98.9
- ICD-10 Code for:
- Unsp behav/emotn disord w onst usly occur in chldhd and adol
- Is Billable?
- Yes - Valid for Submission
- Chronic Condition Indicator: [1]
- Not chronic
- Code Navigator:
F98.9 is a billable diagnosis code used to specify a medical diagnosis of unspecified behavioral and emotional disorders with onset usually occurring in childhood and adolescence. The code is valid during the current fiscal year for the submission of HIPAA-covered transactions from October 01, 2025 through September 30, 2026.
Unspecified diagnosis codes like F98.9 are acceptable when clinical information is unknown or not available about a particular condition. Although a more specific code is preferable, unspecified codes should be used when such codes most accurately reflect what is known about a patient's condition. Specific diagnosis codes should not be used if not supported by the patient's medical record.
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.
- Adolescent behavior alteration
- Axis II diagnosis
- Axis V diagnosis
- Behavioral and emotional disorder with onset in childhood
- Childhood disorder of conduct and emotion
- Chronic mental disorder
- Conduct disorder, childhood-onset type
- Deferred diagnosis on Axis II
- Hypersomnia disorder related to another mental disorder
- Insomnia disorder related to another mental disorder
- Mental disorder
- Mental disorder in adolescence
- Mental disorder in childhood
- On severe mental illness register
- Psychiatric behavioral disability
- Psychiatric treatment changed
- Psychiatric treatment started
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.
Miscellaneous mental and behavioral disorders/conditions
CCSR Code: MBD013
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.
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).
- Disorder (of) - See Also: Disease;
- Disturbance (s) - See Also: Disease;
- habit, child - F98.9
- disturbance, child - F98.9
Index of External Cause of Injuries
References found for this diagnosis code in the External Cause of Injuries Index:
- Disorder(of)
- mental (or behavioral) (nonpsychotic)
- infancy, childhood or adolescence
- Disturbance(s)
- habit, child
- Habit, habituation
- disturbance, child
Convert F98.9 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.
Emotional dis child NOS
ICD-9-CM: 313.9
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.
Patient Education
Child Behavior Disorders
All kids misbehave some times. And some may have temporary behavior problems due to stress. For example, the birth of a sibling, a divorce, or a death in the family may cause a child to act out. Behavior disorders are more serious. They involve a pattern of hostile, aggressive, or disruptive behaviors for more than 6 months. The behavior is also not appropriate for the child's age.
Warning signs can include:
- Harming or threatening themselves, other people or pets
- Damaging or destroying property
- Lying or stealing
- Not doing well in school, skipping school
- Early smoking, drinking or drug use
- Early sexual activity
- Frequent tantrums and arguments
- Consistent hostility toward authority figures
If you see signs of a problem, ask for help. Poor choices can become habits. Kids who have behavior problems are at higher risk for school failure, mental health problems, and even suicide. Classes or family therapy may help parents learn to set and enforce limits. Talk therapy and behavior therapy for your child can also help.
[Learn More in MedlinePlus]
Code History
- FY 2026 - No Change, effective from 10/1/2025 through 9/30/2026
- FY 2025 - No Change, effective from 10/1/2024 through 9/30/2025
- 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] Not chronic - A diagnosis code that does not fit the criteria for chronic condition (duration, ongoing medical treatment, and limitations) is considered not chronic. Some codes designated as not chronic are acute conditions. Other diagnosis codes that indicate a possible chronic condition, but for which the duration of the illness is not specified in the code description (i.e., we do not know the condition has lasted 12 months or longer) also are considered not chronic.
