Felty's syndrome, left hand

This code identifies Felty's syndrome, a rare and severe complication of rheumatoid arthritis characterized by the triad of seropositive rheumatoid arthritis, splenomegaly, and neutropenia, specifically affecting the left hand. Patients typically present with chronic, erosive arthritis, recurrent infections due to low neutrophil counts, and an enlarged spleen.

Use this code when documentation clearly states a diagnosis of Felty's syndrome with involvement of the left hand. This diagnosis should be supported by evidence of rheumatoid arthritis, splenomegaly, and neutropenia. This code is appropriate for initial and subsequent encounters where the left hand is the site of manifestation.

• Ensure documentation specifies "left hand" involvement; otherwise, an unspecified hand code or bilateral code may be more appropriate.
• Always code the underlying rheumatoid arthritis (e.g., M05.00, M05.09) as the primary diagnosis, with Felty's syndrome as a secondary diagnosis.
• Look for documentation of associated conditions such as neutropenia (D70.0) and splenomegaly (R16.1) to code concurrently.