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LETTERS: Paul Abrams The term BPH is misused BMJ 2008; 336: 405 [Full text]

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Coding problem

John M Justice   (26 February 2008)

Coding problem 26 February 2008
John M Justice, GP Simpson House Medical Centre, 255 Eastcote Lane Harrow HA2 8RS Send response to journal: Re: Coding problem	The problem from the GP's point of view is that we have to code our diagnoses using Read codes. There is no code for LUTS, nor for BPE or BPO. There are symptom codes relating to frequency of micturition, nocturia, or poor stream. And there is prostatism, which does have a code, and so gets used by default. BPH also has a code, and is used interchangeably with prostatism. But until the Read system is improved I fear we will continue to diagnose prostatism when we mean LUTS or BPO. Competing interests: None declared