O71.4 vs S31.43XA
O71.4 (Obstetric high vaginal laceration alone) compared with S31.43XA (Puncture wound without foreign body of vagina and vulva, initial encounter), 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. S31.43XA carries an Excludes1 note covering O71.4: “injury to vagina and vulva during delivery (O70.-, O71.4)”
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
| O71.4Obstetric high vaginal laceration alone | S31.43XAPuncture wound without foreign body of vagina and vulva, initial encounter | |
|---|---|---|
| Billing status | Billable | Billable |
| Classification | O00-O9A — Pregnancy, Childbirth and the Puerperium (O00-O9A) | S00-T88 — Injury, Poisoning and Certain Other Consequences of External Causes (S00-T88) |
| Definition | Obstetric high vaginal laceration alone is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (O71.4). | Puncture wound without foreign body of vagina and vulva, initial encounter is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (S31.43A). |
| 7th character | — | The appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category S31 |
| Includes | obstetric damage from instruments Laceration of vaginal wall without perineal laceration | injuries to the abdominal wall injuries to the anus injuries to the buttock injuries to the external genitalia |
Derived from the official CMS ICD-10-CM tabular data (FY2026). Not billing advice; verify sequencing rules for the encounter. All data sources