Dizziness and blurred vision following ingestion of prescribed Allegra and a glass of wine at dinner would be reported as a(n)

According to the ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines for Coding and Reporting, a poisoning occurs when a substance is used incorrectly. This includes the interaction of a drug taken as prescribed with a nonprescribed substance, such as alcohol. In this scenario, the patient took a prescribed medication (Allegra) with wine (alcohol), and the resulting symptoms are due to this interaction. Therefore, the event is classified as a poisoning, not an adverse effect. An adverse effect would only be applicable if the drug was taken correctly and without any interacting, nonprescribed substances.

B. adverse reaction to a drug: This is incorrect because the reaction resulted from the interaction of a prescribed drug with alcohol, which the official guidelines define as a poisoning.
C. late effect of a poisoning: This is incorrect as the symptoms are acute, occurring immediately following ingestion, not a sequela or late effect from a prior poisoning.
D. late effect of an adverse reaction: This is incorrect because the event is a poisoning, not an adverse reaction, and the effects are acute, not late effects.

1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). (2023). ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines for Coding and Reporting FY 2024. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Section I.C.19.e.5.b.i states, "A poisoning is a reaction to the improper use of a medication... Poisonings are also the result of an interaction of a drug(s) and alcohol." (Page 81).

2. American Hospital Association (AHA). (2022). ICD-10-CM and ICD-10-PCS Coding Handbook with Answers. Chapter 21: Injury, Poisoning, and Certain Other Consequences of External Causes. The handbook clarifies that when a patient takes a correctly prescribed and administered drug that results in a reaction due to interaction with alcohol, the condition is coded as a poisoning.

3. Johns, M. L. (2021). Health Information Management Technology: An Applied Approach (6th ed.). AHIMA Press. Chapter 10, "Clinical Classification Systems," in the section discussing ICD-10-CM coding for poisonings, reiterates the official guideline that a drug-alcohol interaction is classified as a poisoning.