S15.129A (Major laceration of unspecified vertebral artery, initial encounter) compared with S15.129D (Major laceration of unspecified vertebral artery, subsequent encounter), from the official CMS tabular data. S15.129A and S15.129D code the same injury at a different phase of treatment.
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. S15.129A and S15.129D 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.
| S15.129AMajor laceration of unspecified vertebral artery, initial encounter | S15.129DMajor laceration of unspecified vertebral artery, subsequent encounter | |
|---|---|---|
| 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 | Major laceration of unspecified vertebral artery, initial encounter is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (S15.129A). | Major laceration of unspecified vertebral artery, subsequent encounter is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (S15.129D). |
| 7th character | The appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category S15 | The appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category S15 |
| 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