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O75.1 vs O85

O75.1 (Shock during or following labor and delivery) compared with O85 (Puerperal sepsis), 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 can be reported together when both conditions are documented, because O75.1 lists O85 under Excludes2, which marks them as distinct conditions.

Official rule
What is different?

The conditions named.O75.1 is “Shock during or following labor and delivery”; O85 is “Puerperal sepsis”.

Registry fact

Can these codes be reported together?

Yes, when both are documented.O75.1 lists O85 under Excludes2: “puerperal (postpartum) sepsis (O85)”. Excludes2 marks distinct conditions that may both be reported when both are documented.

Official ruleGuide: Excludes1 vs Excludes2

Is there an Excludes2 relationship?

Yes.O75.1’s tabular entry: “puerperal (postpartum) sepsis (O85)”. The note covers O85.

Official ruleGuide: Excludes1 vs Excludes2

Nothing found in 4 other checks; 1 check does not apply
Is there an Excludes1 relationship?

None.Neither entry carries an Excludes1 note that names the other code. O85 carries 3 Excludes1 notes covering other codes; the side-by-side table quotes them.

Official rule

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

O75.1
Shock during or following labor and delivery
↔
O85
Puerperal sepsis

What we found

Yes, when both are documented.O75.1 carries an Excludes2 note covering O85: “puerperal (postpartum) sepsis (O85)”

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 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
O75.1

Shock during or following labor and delivery

O85

Puerperal sepsis

StatusSame for both
Billable
Excludes1Differs
O75.1

None at this code

O85
  • fever of unknown origin following delivery (O86.4)
  • obstetric pyemic and septic embolism (O88.3-)
  • puerperal septic thrombophlebitis (O86.81)
Excludes2Differs
O75.1
  • puerperal (postpartum) infection (O86.-)
  • puerperal (postpartum) sepsis (O85)
O85
  • genital tract infection following delivery (O86.1-)
  • sepsis during labor (O75.3)
  • urinary tract infection following delivery (O86.2-)
  • mental and behavioral disorders associated with the puerperium (F53.-)
  • obstetrical tetanus (A34)
  • puerperal osteomalacia (M83.0)
Use additional codeDiffers
O75.1

None at this code

O85
  • code (B95-B97), to identify infectious agent
  • code (R65.2-) to identify severe sepsis, if applicable
CategoryDiffers
O75.1

O75 Other complications of labor and delivery, not elsewhere classified

O85

Is itself a category

ChapterSame for both

O00-O9A — Pregnancy, Childbirth and the Puerperium (O00-O9A)

IncludesDiffers
O75.1
  • Obstetric shock following labor and delivery
O85
  • Postpartum sepsis
  • Puerperal peritonitis
  • Puerperal pyemia

No Code first, Code also and 7th character 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.

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