M54.50 - Low back pain, unspecified

Clinical Definition

Oxygen-dependent chronic airway obstruction is a condition requiring supplemental oxygen therapy to maintain adequate oxygenation due to advanced respiratory disease, most commonly COPD. Patients require documented evidence of chronic hypoxemia and the need for long-term oxygen therapy.

Documentation Requirements

• Dependency Status:

  • Must document that patient is "oxygen dependent"

  • Specify if continuous or nocturnal use

  • Document oxygen flow rate (L/min)

  • Duration of oxygen requirement (must be chronic)

• Underlying Condition:

  • Primary respiratory diagnosis causing dependency

  • Documentation of chronic hypoxemia

  • Pulse oximetry or blood gas results supporting need

• Treatment Plan:

  • Type of oxygen delivery system

  • Home oxygen prescription details

  • Frequency and duration of use

Common Synonyms

• "On home O2"

• "Needs oxygen tank"

• "Uses oxygen concentrator"

• "Requires supplemental oxygen"

Coding Conflicts

Excludes1:

• Acute respiratory failure

• Short-term oxygen use

• Hypoxemia without documented dependency

Excludes2:

• Sleep apnea requiring CPAP/BiPAP only

• Acute oxygen needs during hospitalization

Scribing.io Automation

Our AI scribe automatically identifies:

• References to home oxygen use

• Oxygen flow rates and delivery methods

• Documentation of chronic hypoxemia

• Treatment plan details

• Automatically flags when dependency documentation is missing

• Prompts for missing elements like flow rates or duration of use

The system will flag phrases like "continues on home O2" or "oxygen-dependent" and prompt for additional required specificity if missing.