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M79.5 vs T16.9XXS

M79.5 (Residual foreign body in soft tissue) compared with T16.9XXS (Foreign body in ear, unspecified ear, sequela), from the official CMS tabular data.

Summary

These codes can be reported together when both conditions are documented, because T16.9XXS lists M79.5 under Excludes2, which marks them as distinct conditions.

Official rule
What is different?

The conditions named and chapter.M79.5 is “Residual foreign body in soft tissue”; T16.9XXS is “Foreign body in ear, unspecified ear, sequela”. M79.5 sits in M00-M99 — Diseases of the Musculoskeletal System and Connective Tissue (M00-M99); T16.9XXS in S00-T88 — Injury, Poisoning and Certain Other Consequences of External Causes (S00-T88).

Registry fact

Can these codes be reported together?

Yes, when both are documented.T16.9XXS lists M79.5 under Excludes2: “residual foreign body in soft tissue (M79.5)”. Excludes2 marks distinct conditions that may both be reported when both are documented.

Official ruleGuide: Excludes1 vs Excludes2

Is there an Excludes1 relationship?

None.Neither entry carries an Excludes1 note that names the other code. M79.5 carries 4 Excludes1 notes covering other codes; the side-by-side table quotes them.

Official rule

Is there an Excludes2 relationship?

Yes.T16.9XXS’s tabular entry: “residual foreign body in soft tissue (M79.5)”. The note covers M79.5.

Official ruleGuide: Excludes1 vs Excludes2

Is one more specific?

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

Is one a parent or header code?

No.Both are billable codes, and neither contains the other.

Registry fact

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?

Informational

Excludes2 relationship

T16.9XXS
Foreign body in ear, unspecified ear, sequela
↔
M79.5
Residual foreign body in soft tissue

What we found

Yes, when both are documented.T16.9XXS carries an Excludes2 note covering M79.5: “residual foreign body in soft tissue (M79.5)”

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.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 FY2026

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

M79.5Residual foreign body in soft tissueT16.9XXSForeign body in ear, unspecified ear, sequela
Billing statusBillableBillable
ClassificationM00-M99 — Diseases of the Musculoskeletal System and Connective Tissue (M00-M99)S00-T88 — Injury, Poisoning and Certain Other Consequences of External Causes (S00-T88)
DefinitionResidual foreign body in soft tissue is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (M79.5).Foreign body in ear, unspecified ear, sequela is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (T16.9XXS).
7th character—The appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category T16
Includes—
foreign body in auditory canal
Excludes1
foreign body granuloma of skin and subcutaneous tissue (L92.3)
foreign body granuloma of soft tissue (M60.2-)
psychogenic rheumatism (F45.8)
soft tissue pain, psychogenic (F45.41)
—
Excludes2—
foreign body accidentally left in operation wound (T81.5-)
foreign body in penetrating wound - See open wound by body region
residual foreign body in soft tissue (M79.5)
splinter, without open wound - See superficial injury by body region
Use additional code—
code, if known, for foreign body entering into or through a natural orifice (W44.-)

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.

Edit this comparisonCheck a whole claim

Derived from the official CMS ICD-10-CM tabular data (FY2026). A coding-rule comparison, not billing advice: payer-specific edits and medical-necessity policy are outside its scope. All data sources