S11.23XA (Puncture wound without foreign body of pharynx and cervical esophagus, initial encounter) compared with S11.23XS (Puncture wound without foreign body of pharynx and cervical esophagus, sequela), from the official CMS tabular data. S11.23XA and S11.23XS code the same injury at a different phase of treatment. MedCoder-derived
Same underlying diagnosis, different encounter phase.
The 7th character records the phase of care for the encounter being coded, so a single encounter takes one of these characters, not several. Review whether both phases belong on the same episode of care.
Source: ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines, Section I.C.19.a
Same injury, other encounter phase. S11.23XA and S11.23XS code the same injury at a different phase of treatment, set by the 7th character.
The 7th character records the type of care given at the encounter being coded (ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines, Section I.C.19.a), so one encounter takes one of these, not both.
| S11.23XAPuncture wound without foreign body of pharynx and cervical esophagus, initial encounter | S11.23XSPuncture wound without foreign body of pharynx and cervical esophagus, sequela | |
|---|---|---|
| Billing status | Billable | Billable |
| Classification | S00-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) |
| Definition | Puncture wound without foreign body of pharynx and cervical esophagus, initial encounter is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (S11.23XA). | Puncture wound without foreign body of pharynx and cervical esophagus, sequela is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (S11.23XS). |
| 7th character | The appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category S11 | The appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category S11 |
| Includes | injuries of nape injuries of supraclavicular region injuries of throat | injuries of nape injuries of supraclavicular region injuries of throat |
Derived from the official CMS ICD-10-CM tabular data (FY2026). Not billing advice; verify sequencing rules for the encounter. All data sources