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S00.472 vs S00.479

S00.472 (Other superficial bite of left ear) compared with S00.479 (Other superficial bite of unspecified ear), from the official CMS tabular data. S00.472 and S00.479 code the same condition on opposite sides.

Relationship

Review

Laterality relationship

S00.472
Left
Other superficial bite of left ear
S00.479
Unspecified
Other superficial bite of unspecified ear

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. S00.472 and S00.479 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

S00.472Other superficial bite of left earS00.479Other superficial bite of unspecified ear
Billing statusNon-billable header

Report instead: S00.472A, S00.472D, S00.472S

Non-billable header

Report instead: S00.479A, S00.479D, S00.479S

ClassificationS00-T88 — Injury, Poisoning and Certain Other Consequences of External Causes (S00-T88)S00-T88 — Injury, Poisoning and Certain Other Consequences of External Causes (S00-T88)
DefinitionOther superficial bite of left ear is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (S00.472).Other superficial bite of unspecified ear is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (S00.479).
7th characterThe appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category S00The appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category S00
Includes
injuries of ear
injuries of eye
injuries of face [any part]
injuries of gum
injuries of ear
injuries of eye
injuries of face [any part]
injuries of gum

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