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H44.741 vs H44.749

H44.741 (Retained (nonmagnetic) (old) foreign body in posterior wall of globe, right eye) compared with H44.749 (Retained (nonmagnetic) (old) foreign body in posterior wall of globe, unspecified eye), from the official CMS tabular data. H44.741 and H44.749 code the same condition on opposite sides.

Relationship

Review

Laterality relationship

H44.741
Right
Retained (nonmagnetic) (old) foreign body in posterior wall of globe, right eye
H44.749
Unspecified
Retained (nonmagnetic) (old) foreign body in posterior wall of globe, unspecified eye

Same condition; these differ only in which side is documented.

These codes share a category and title and differ only in the side affected. The documentation decides which applies, and a bilateral code is reported only where the code set provides one.

Source: ICD-10-CM tabular list (laterality variant derived from the code title)

Can these codes be reported together?

Same condition, opposite side. H44.741 and H44.749 name the same condition on opposite sides of the body.

Same category and title, differing only in which side is affected — the documentation decides which one applies, and a bilateral code is reported only where the code set provides one.

Side by side

H44.741Retained (nonmagnetic) (old) foreign body in posterior wall of globe, right eyeH44.749Retained (nonmagnetic) (old) foreign body in posterior wall of globe, unspecified eye
Billing statusBillableBillable
ClassificationH00-H59 — Diseases of the Eye and Adnexa (H00-H59)H00-H59 — Diseases of the Eye and Adnexa (H00-H59)
DefinitionRetained (nonmagnetic) (old) foreign body in posterior wall of globe, right eye is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (H44.741).Retained (nonmagnetic) (old) foreign body in posterior wall of globe, unspecified eye is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (H44.749).
Includes
disorders affecting multiple structures of eye
disorders affecting multiple structures of eye
Use additional code
code to identify nonmagnetic foreign body (Z18.01-Z18.10, Z18.12, Z18.2-Z18.9)
code to identify nonmagnetic foreign body (Z18.01-Z18.10, Z18.12, Z18.2-Z18.9)

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