Billable Medical Code for Abnormality of Gait
Diagnosis Code for Reimbursement Claim: ICD-9-CM 781.2
Code will be replaced by October 2015 and relabeled as ICD-10-CM 781.2.
Known As
Unsteady gait is also known as abnormal gait, ataxic gait, cautious gait (finding), functional gait abnormality (finding), gait abnormality, gait abnormality functional, gait abnormality functional (nonphysiologic), gait ataxic, gait disorder due to weakness (disorder), gait disorder ataxic, gait disorder multifactorial, gait disorder painful gait, gait disorder postural instability, gait disorder spastic, gait disorder stumbling, gait disorder weakness, gait disturbance senile, gait multifactorial, gait painful, gait postural instability, gait spastic,
gait stumbling, gait unsteady, gait weakness, limp in childhood, limping, limping child, multifactorial gait problem (finding), painful gait (finding), spastic gait (finding), stumbling gait (finding), toe walking, toe-walking gait, unsteady gait, and unsteady when walking (finding). This excludes ataxia: NOS (781.3), difficulty in walking (719.7), locomotor (progressive) (094.0). This applies to gait: ataxic, paralytic, spastic, and staggering.
Unsteady Gait Definition and Symptoms
Unsteady gait is a coordination problem when walking, as well as trouble maintaining posture. Some common conditions associated with unsteady gait are epilepsy, hypothermia, head injury, stroke, and middle ear infections. Symptoms include frequent falls, trouble holding the body straight up when walking, and trouble walking.