Specific Phobia

Question 1

Specific Phobia Criteria A

Answer 1

Marked fear or anxiety about a specific object or situation (e.g., flying, heights, animals, receiving an injection, seeing blood).

Note: In children the fear or anxiety may be expressed by crying, tantrums, freezing, or clinging.

Question 2

Specific Phobia Criteria B

Answer 2

The phobic object or situation almost always provokes immediate fear or anxiety.

Question 3

Specific Phobia Criteria C

Answer 3

The phobic object or situation is actively avoided or endured with intense fear or anxiety.

Question 4

Specific Phobia Criteria D

Answer 4

The fear or anxiety is out of proportion to the actual danger posed by the specific object or situation and to the sociocultural context.

Question 5

Specific Phobia Criteria E

Answer 5

The fear, anxiety, or avoidance is persistent, typically lasting for 6 months or more.

Question 6

Specific Phobia Criteria F

Answer 6

The fear, anxiety, or avoidance causes clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning.

Question 7

Specific Phobia Criteria G

Answer 7

The disturbance is not better explained by the symptoms of another mental disorder, including fear, anxiety, and avoidance of situations associated with panic-like symptoms or other incapacitating symptoms (as in agoraphobia); objects or situations related to obsessions (as in obsessive-compulsive disorder); reminders of traumatic events (as in posttraumatic stress disorder); separation from home or attachment figures (as in separation anxiety disorder) or social situations (As in social anxiety disorder).

Question 8

Specific Phobia Specifiers

Answer 8

Specify if:

F40.218 Animal (Ie.g., spiders, insects, dogs).
F40.228 Natural environment (e.g., heights, storms, water).
F40.23x Blood-injection-injury (e.g., needles, invasive medical procedures).
Coding Note: Select specific ICD-10-CM code as follows:
F40.230 Fear of blood
F40.231 Fear of injections and transfusions
F40.232 Fear of other medical care
F40.233 Fear of injury
F40.248 Situational (e.g., airplanes, elevators, enclosed places)
F40.298 Other (e.g., situations that may lead to choking or vomiting; in children, e.g., loud sounds or costumed characters)

Coding Note: When more than 1 phobic stimulus is present, code all ICD-10-CM codes that apply.