International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems
The International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (commonly known by the abbreviation ICD) is detailed description of known diseases and injuries. It is published by the World Health Organization and is used world-wide for morbidity and mortality statistics.
It is revised periodically and is currently in its tenth edition, known as the ICD-10.
It is was devised to standardize the collection and
analysis of mortality statistics. It originally began as the Bertillon
Classification (1893) and later became the ICD. Work on ICD-10 began in 1983 and was completed in 1992.
Every disease (or group of related diseases) is described with its diagnosis and given a unique code, up to five letters long.
A related publication is the ICD-CM (Clinical
Modification), published by the U.S. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, diagnosis, diagnosis-related group.
