Resistance to other specified antimicrobial drug

This diagnosis indicates that a bacterial or other microbial infection is resistant to a specific antimicrobial agent that is not a beta-lactam antibiotic, macrolide, fluoroquinolone, or other explicitly categorized drug. It signifies that standard treatment with certain antimicrobial classes may be ineffective due to the pathogen's acquired resistance mechanisms.

Use this code when laboratory testing (e.g., culture and sensitivity) confirms resistance to an antimicrobial drug that falls outside the more specific resistance categories. This is appropriate for documenting resistance to drugs like tetracyclines, aminoglycosides, or sulfonamides when the specific resistance is known and not covered by other Z16 codes.

• Always sequence this code after the infection code to provide context for the treatment challenges.
• Ensure documentation clearly specifies the antimicrobial drug class to which the pathogen is resistant.
• Avoid using this code if a more specific Z16 code for resistance to a particular drug class (e.g., Z16.11 for MRSA) is available and applicable.