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H44.6 vs S05.52XS

H44.6 (Retained (old) intraocular foreign body, magnetic) compared with S05.52XS (Penetrating wound with foreign body of left eyeball, sequela), from the official CMS tabular data.

Current data releases:ICD-10-CM FY2027 · ICD-10-PCS FY2027 · HCPCS October 2026 · MS-DRG v44 · Medicare Code Editor v44.0 · NCCI PTP Q4 2026 · MUE Q4 2026 · NCD code lists 2026-01 · LCD export September 28, 2026 · All releases and sources

Summary

These codes should not be reported together because H44.6’s tabular entry lists S05.52XS under Excludes1.

Official rule
What is different?

The conditions named, billing status and chapter.H44.6 is “Retained (old) intraocular foreign body, magnetic”; S05.52XS is “Penetrating wound with foreign body of left eyeball, sequela”. H44.6 is a non-billable header; S05.52XS is billable. H44.6 sits in H00-H59 — Diseases of the Eye and Adnexa (H00-H59); S05.52XS in S00-T88 — Injury, Poisoning and Certain Other Consequences of External Causes (S00-T88).

Registry fact

Can these codes be reported together?

No.H44.6’s entry carries an Excludes1 note covering S05.52XS: “current intraocular foreign body (S05.-)”. Both may be reported only when the documentation shows the two conditions are unrelated to each other (ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines, Section I.A.12.a).

Official ruleGuide: Excludes1 vs Excludes2

Is there an Excludes1 relationship?

Yes.H44.6’s tabular entry: “current intraocular foreign body (S05.-)”. The note covers S05.52XS.

Official ruleGuide: Excludes1 vs Excludes2

Is there an Excludes2 relationship?

Yes.S05.52XS’s tabular entry: “retained (old) intraocular foreign body (H44.6-, H44.7)”. The note covers H44.6.

Official ruleGuide: Excludes1 vs Excludes2

Is one a parent or header code?

One is a header.H44.6 is a non-billable header, but S05.52XS is not one of its subdivisions.

Registry fact

Nothing found in 2 other checks; 1 check does not apply
Is one more specific?

Not comparable.The codes sit in different categories; specificity is only comparable within one category.

Are there sequencing instructions?

None.Neither entry carries a Code First or Use Additional Code note that names the other.

Official rule

Are there other coding relationships?

None found.No laterality, encounter-phase, Table of Neoplasms, Table of Drugs and Chemicals, or history-versus-active-disease relationship links these codes.

MedCoder-derived

Official rule: a tabular instructional note or a section of the ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines, quoted as published. Registry fact: the codes’ own published attributes (titles, billable status, position in the hierarchy, code set). MedCoder-derived: a reading MedCoder computes from those facts; it is not itself a rule. How to read the labels

Can these codes be reported together?

Excludes1 — generally not reported together

Excludes1 conflict

H44.6
Retained (old) intraocular foreign body, magnetic
↔
S05.52XS
Penetrating wound with foreign body of left eyeball, sequela

What we found

No — do not report together.H44.6 carries an Excludes1 note covering S05.52XS: “current intraocular foreign body (S05.-)”

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

What to review

Report one of the two. Both may be reported only when the documentation shows the two conditions are unrelated to each other.

Guide: Excludes1 vs Excludes2Check these on a claim

Why it matters

An Excludes1 note means the two conditions are not ordinarily reported together for the same encounter, because the classification treats them as mutually exclusive forms of the same condition. The documented exception is when the two conditions are unrelated to each other.

Source / rule

CMS ICD-10-CM tabular instructional notes; ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines, Section I.A.12.a

Informational

Excludes2 relationship

S05.52XS
Penetrating wound with foreign body of left eyeball, sequela
↔
H44.6
Retained (old) intraocular foreign body, magnetic

What we found

Yes, when both are documented.S05.52XS carries an Excludes2 note covering H44.6: “retained (old) intraocular foreign body (H44.6-, H44.7)”

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

What to review

Report both only when the documentation supports both conditions; otherwise report the one documented.

Guide: Excludes1 vs Excludes2Check these on a claim

Why it matters

An Excludes2 note means the excluded condition is not part of the code above it, but a patient can have both. Report both when both are documented.

Source / rule

CMS ICD-10-CM tabular instructional notes

Official guidance behind these answers

  • Section I.A.12.a — Excludes1 · applies to: Excludes1

    A type 1 Excludes note is a pure excludes note. It means “NOT CODED HERE!” An Excludes1 note indicates that the code excluded should never be used at the same time as the code above the Excludes1 note. An Excludes1 is used when two conditions cannot occur together, such as a congenital form versus an acquired form of the same condition. An exception to the Excludes1 definition is the circumstance when the two conditions are unrelated to each other. If it is not clear whether the two conditions involving an Excludes1 note are related or not, query the provider. For example, code F45.8, Other somatoform disorders, has an Excludes1 note for "sleep related teeth grinding (G47.63)," because "teeth grinding" is an inclusion term under F45.8. Only one of these two codes should be assigned for teeth grinding. However psychogenic dysmenorrhea is also an inclusion term under F45.8, and a patient could have both this condition and sleep related teeth grinding. In this case, the two conditions are clearly unrelated to each other, and so it would be appropriate to report F45.8 and G47.63 together.

    ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines FY2027

  • Section I.A.12.b — Excludes2 · applies to: Excludes2

    A type 2 Excludes note represents “Not included here.” An excludes2 note indicates that the condition excluded is not part of the condition represented by the code, but a patient may have both conditions at the same time. When an Excludes2 note appears under a code, it is acceptable to use both the code and the excluded code together, when appropriate.

    ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines FY2027

Quoted from the ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines for Coding and Reporting in effect for the release shown. The tabular notes above are the code-level instruction; these sections are the convention that says how such a note is applied. Source document (CMS PDF) · Release and checksum

Side by side

Similar descriptions do not make codes interchangeable. The documentation and the official instructions decide which code applies.

Official descriptionDiffers
H44.6

Retained (old) intraocular foreign body, magnetic

S05.52XS

Penetrating wound with foreign body of left eyeball, sequela

StatusDiffers
H44.6
Non-billable header

A header is not reported on a claim; a code beneath it is.

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

S05.52XS
Billable
Excludes1Differs
H44.6
  • current intraocular foreign body (S05.-)
S05.52XS

None at this code

Excludes2Differs
H44.6
  • retained foreign body in eyelid (H02.81-)
  • retained (old) foreign body following penetrating wound of orbit (H05.5-)
  • retained (old) intraocular foreign body, nonmagnetic (H44.7-)
S05.52XS
  • retained (old) intraocular foreign body (H44.6-, H44.7)
  • 2nd cranial [optic] nerve injury (S04.0-)
  • 3rd cranial [oculomotor] nerve injury (S04.1-)
  • open wound of eyelid and periocular area (S01.1-)
  • orbital bone fracture (S02.1-, S02.3-, S02.8-)
  • superficial injury of eyelid (S00.1-S00.2)
  • burns and corrosions (T20-T32)
  • effects of foreign body in ear (T16)
  • effects of foreign body in larynx (T17.3)
  • effects of foreign body in mouth NOS (T18.0)
  • effects of foreign body in nose (T17.0-T17.1)
  • effects of foreign body in pharynx (T17.2)
  • effects of foreign body on external eye (T15.-)
  • frostbite (T33-T34)
  • insect bite or sting, venomous (T63.4)
Use additional codeDiffers
H44.6
  • code to identify magnetic foreign body (Z18.11)
S05.52XS

None at this code

Code alsoDiffers
H44.6

None at this code

S05.52XS
  • for any associated infection
CategoryDiffers
H44.6

H44 Disorders of globe

S05.52XS

S05 Injury of eye and orbit

ChapterDiffers
H44.6

H00-H59 — Diseases of the Eye and Adnexa (H00-H59)

S05.52XS

S00-T88 — Injury, Poisoning and Certain Other Consequences of External Causes (S00-T88)

IncludesDiffers
H44.6
  • disorders affecting multiple structures of eye
S05.52XS
  • open wound of eye and orbit
  • injuries of ear
  • injuries of eye
  • injuries of face [any part]
  • injuries of gum
  • injuries of jaw
  • injuries of oral cavity
  • injuries of palate
  • injuries of periocular area
  • injuries of scalp
  • injuries of temporomandibular joint area
  • injuries of tongue
  • injuries of tooth
7th characterDiffers
H44.6

None at this code

S05.52XS
  • The appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category S05

No Code first note at either code.

Notes are the code’s own tabular entry, quoted as published. A note that names the other code is the one the verdict above rests on. In a row that differs, each code’s own notes are listed under it, and the notes every code shares are listed once beneath them.

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Derived from the official CMS ICD-10-CM tabular data (FY2027). A coding-rule comparison, not billing advice: payer-specific edits and medical-necessity policy are outside its scope. All data sources