Skip to main content

H02.81 vs H44.6

H02.81 (Retained foreign body in eyelid) compared with H44.6 (Retained (old) intraocular foreign body, magnetic), from the official CMS tabular data. Do not report these codes together: the official tabular list marks them Excludes1.

Can these codes be reported together?

No — do not report together. H02.81 carries an Excludes1 note covering H44.6: “retained intraocular foreign body (H44.6-, H44.7-)”

Sole exception: when the two conditions are documented as unrelated to each other (ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines, Section I.A.12.a).

Yes, when both are documented. H44.6 carries an Excludes2 note covering H02.81: “retained foreign body in eyelid (H02.81-)”

Excludes2 marks distinct conditions — both may be reported when both are documented.

Side by side

H02.81Retained foreign body in eyelidH44.6Retained (old) intraocular foreign body, magnetic
Billing statusNon-billable header

Report instead: H02.811, H02.812, H02.813, H02.814, H02.815

Non-billable header

Report instead: H44.601, H44.602, H44.603, H44.609, H44.611

ClassificationH00-H59 — Diseases of the Eye and Adnexa (H00-H59)H00-H59 — Diseases of the Eye and Adnexa (H00-H59)
DefinitionRetained foreign body in eyelid is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (H02.81).Retained (old) intraocular foreign body, magnetic is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (H44.6).
Includes
disorders affecting multiple structures of eye
Use additional code
code to identify the type of retained foreign body (Z18.-)
code to identify magnetic foreign body (Z18.11)

Derived from the official CMS ICD-10-CM tabular data (FY2026). Not billing advice; verify sequencing rules for the encounter. All data sources