S20.47 vs S21.24
S20.47 (Other superficial bite of back wall of thorax) compared with S21.24 (Puncture wound with foreign body of back wall of thorax without penetration into thoracic cavity), 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. S20.47 carries an Excludes1 note covering S21.24: “open bite of back wall of thorax (S21.24)”
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
| S20.47Other superficial bite of back wall of thorax | S21.24Puncture wound with foreign body of back wall of thorax without penetration into thoracic cavity | |
|---|---|---|
| Billing status | Non-billable header Report instead: S20.471A, S20.471D, S20.471S, S20.472A, S20.472D | Non-billable header Report instead: S21.241A, S21.241D, S21.241S, S21.242A, S21.242D |
| 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 | Other superficial bite of back wall of thorax is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (S20.47). | Puncture wound with foreign body of back wall of thorax without penetration into thoracic cavity is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (S21.24). |
| 7th character | The appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category S20 | The appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category S21 |
| Includes | injuries of breast injuries of chest (wall) injuries of interscapular area | injuries of breast injuries of chest (wall) injuries of interscapular area |
Derived from the official CMS ICD-10-CM tabular data (FY2026). Not billing advice; verify sequencing rules for the encounter. All data sources