Irritant contact dermatitis due to plants, except food

This code signifies an inflammatory skin reaction caused by direct contact with irritating substances from plants, excluding those ingested as food. It manifests as redness, itching, swelling, and sometimes blistering, resulting from a non-allergic response to plant chemicals.

Apply this code when documentation clearly indicates a contact dermatitis resulting from exposure to a plant, such as poison ivy, poison oak, or other botanical irritants. The physician's notes should specify the plant exposure and the resulting irritant dermatitis.

• Differentiate from allergic contact dermatitis (L23.-) which involves an immune system response.
• Ensure the documentation specifies "irritant" and "plant" as the cause, and that the plant is not a food item.
• Consider an external cause code (X-code) to identify the specific plant or circumstance of exposure, if known and documented.