An urgent-care physician group visit documents dehydration due to viral gastroenteritis. How should etiology and dehydration be captured?

When dehydration is documented as due to viral gastroenteritis, both the underlying infectious gastroenteritis and the dehydration should be coded to report etiology and the treated fluid deficit. Omitting either condition understates severity and clinical complexity. Heat exhaustion is not an appropriate substitute when the documented cause is viral gastroenteritis.