M46.4 vs M54

M46.4 (Discitis, unspecified) compared with M54 (Dorsalgia), 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. M54 carries an Excludes1 note covering M46.4: “discitis NOS (M46.4-)”

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

Side by side

	M46.4Discitis, unspecified	M54Dorsalgia
Billing status	Non-billable header Report instead: M46.40, M46.41, M46.42, M46.43, M46.44	Non-billable header Report instead: M54.00, M54.01, M54.02, M54.03, M54.04
Classification	M00-M99 — Diseases of the Musculoskeletal System and Connective Tissue (M00-M99)	M00-M99 — Diseases of the Musculoskeletal System and Connective Tissue (M00-M99)
Definition	Discitis, unspecified is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (M46.4).	Dorsalgia is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (M54).

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