Drug induced fever

This code signifies a febrile response directly attributable to the administration of a medication. It indicates that a drug is the causative agent of the elevated body temperature, rather than an underlying infection or other medical condition.

Apply this code when a patient presents with fever and the physician's documentation explicitly links the fever to a prescribed or illicit drug. This diagnosis is appropriate when other causes of fever have been ruled out or are considered less likely.

• Always sequence the drug causing the adverse effect (T36-T50 with 5th or 6th character 5) as a secondary diagnosis.
• Do not use this code for fevers occurring after vaccinations; refer to the Excludes1 note.
• Ensure physician documentation clearly states the drug as the etiology of the fever.