Hi all! In need of guidance when provider documents “due to” but the classification does not presume a causal relationship between the two conditions (conditions not linked by “due to” in the alpha index).
Scenario
Provider documented: “Hypothyroidism due to Hashimoto’s thyroiditis”
DGs state: “For conditions not specifically linked by relational terms (with/due to) in the classification, provider documentation must link the conditions in order to code them as related.
Question: would you code “Hypothyroidism due to Hashimoto’s thyroiditis” as:
E06.3 Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (primary, since it’s the underlying condition) & E03.9 Hypothyroidism, unspecified?
Or
E06.3 Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (primary) & E03.8 other specified hypothyroidism

Thanks for your help on this!