Poisoning by skeletal muscle relaxants, assault, init encntr

This code signifies a patient presenting with adverse effects due to the intentional administration of a skeletal muscle relaxant, such as a neuromuscular blocking agent, by another person with the intent to cause harm. The patient is in the acute phase of treatment for this poisoning.

This code is appropriate for documenting cases where a patient has been poisoned by a neuromuscular blocker as a result of an assault, and they are receiving initial medical care for the toxic effects. Examples include a patient brought to the emergency department after being forcibly injected with a paralytic agent by an assailant.

• Always assign an external cause code (Y90-Y99) to describe the circumstances of the assault.
• Do not use this code for accidental poisoning or self-harm; different intent codes exist for those scenarios.
• Ensure documentation clearly specifies the substance as a skeletal muscle relaxant/neuromuscular blocking agent and the intent as assault.