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S31.61A vs S38.3

S31.61A (Laceration without foreign body of abdominal wall, unspecified flank with penetration into peritoneal cavity) compared with S38.3 (Transection (partial) of abdomen), 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 should not be reported together because S31.61A’s tabular entry lists S38.3 under Excludes1.

Official rule
What is different?

The conditions named.S31.61A is “Laceration without foreign body of abdominal wall, unspecified flank with penetration into peritoneal cavity”; S38.3 is “Transection (partial) of abdomen”.

Registry fact

Can these codes be reported together?

No.S31.61A’s entry carries an Excludes1 note covering S38.3: “traumatic amputation of part of abdomen, lower back and pelvis (S38.2-, S38.3)”. Both may be reported only when the documentation shows the two conditions are unrelated to each other (ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines, Section I.A.12.a).

Official ruleGuide: Excludes1 vs Excludes2

Is there an Excludes1 relationship?

Yes.S31.61A’s tabular entry: “traumatic amputation of part of abdomen, lower back and pelvis (S38.2-, S38.3)”. The note covers S38.3.

Official ruleGuide: Excludes1 vs Excludes2

Is there an Excludes2 relationship?

None.Neither entry carries an Excludes2 note that names the other code. S31.61A carries 8 Excludes2 notes and S38.3 carries 6 Excludes2 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?

Both are headers.Both are non-billable headers, 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?

Excludes1 — generally not reported together

Excludes1 conflict

S31.61A
Laceration without foreign body of abdominal wall, unspecified flank with penetration into peritoneal cavity
↔
S38.3
Transection (partial) of abdomen

What we found

No — do not report together.S31.61A carries an Excludes1 note covering S38.3: “traumatic amputation of part of abdomen, lower back and pelvis (S38.2-, S38.3)”

Sole exception: when the two conditions are documented as unrelated to each other (ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines, Section I.A.12.a).

What to review

Report one of the two. Both may be reported only when the documentation shows the two conditions are unrelated to each other.

Guide: Excludes1 vs Excludes2Check these on a claim

Why it matters

An Excludes1 note means the two conditions are not ordinarily reported together for the same encounter, because the classification treats them as mutually exclusive forms of the same condition. The documented exception is when the two conditions are unrelated to each other.

Source / rule

CMS ICD-10-CM tabular instructional notes; ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines, Section I.A.12.a

Official guidance behind these answers

  • Section I.A.12.a — Excludes1 · applies to: Excludes1

    A type 1 Excludes note is a pure excludes note. It means “NOT CODED HERE!” An Excludes1 note indicates that the code excluded should never be used at the same time as the code above the Excludes1 note. An Excludes1 is used when two conditions cannot occur together, such as a congenital form versus an acquired form of the same condition. An exception to the Excludes1 definition is the circumstance when the two conditions are unrelated to each other. If it is not clear whether the two conditions involving an Excludes1 note are related or not, query the provider. For example, code F45.8, Other somatoform disorders, has an Excludes1 note for "sleep related teeth grinding (G47.63)," because "teeth grinding" is an inclusion term under F45.8. Only one of these two codes should be assigned for teeth grinding. However psychogenic dysmenorrhea is also an inclusion term under F45.8, and a patient could have both this condition and sleep related teeth grinding. In this case, the two conditions are clearly unrelated to each other, and so it would be appropriate to report F45.8 and G47.63 together.

    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
S31.61A

Laceration without foreign body of abdominal wall, unspecified flank with penetration into peritoneal cavity

S38.3

Transection (partial) of abdomen

StatusDiffers
S31.61A
Non-billable header

A header is not reported on a claim; a code beneath it is.

Report instead: S31.61AA, S31.61AD, S31.61AS

S38.3
Non-billable header

A header is not reported on a claim; a code beneath it is.

Report instead: S38.3XXA, S38.3XXD, S38.3XXS

Excludes1Differs
S31.61A
  • traumatic amputation of part of abdomen, lower back and pelvis (S38.2-, S38.3)
S38.3

None at this code

Excludes2Differs
S31.61A
  • open wound of hip (S71.00-S71.02)
  • open fracture of pelvis (S32.1--S32.9 with 7th character B)
  • burns and corrosions (T20-T32)
  • effects of foreign body in anus and rectum (T18.5)
  • effects of foreign body in genitourinary tract (T19.-)
  • effects of foreign body in stomach, small intestine and colon (T18.2-T18.4)
  • frostbite (T33-T34)
  • insect bite or sting, venomous (T63.4)
S38.3
  • burns and corrosions (T20-T32)
  • effects of foreign body in anus and rectum (T18.5)
  • effects of foreign body in genitourinary tract (T19.-)
  • effects of foreign body in stomach, small intestine and colon (T18.2-T18.4)
  • frostbite (T33-T34)
  • insect bite or sting, venomous (T63.4)
Code alsoDiffers
S31.61A
  • any associated:
  • spinal cord injury (S24.0, S24.1-, S34.0-, S34.1-)
  • wound infection
S38.3

None at this code

CategoryDiffers
S31.61A

S31 Open wound of abdomen, lower back, pelvis and external genitals

S38.3

S38 Crushing injury and traumatic amputation of abdomen, lower back, pelvis and external genitals

ChapterSame for both

S00-T88 — Injury, Poisoning and Certain Other Consequences of External Causes (S00-T88)

IncludesSame for both
  • injuries to the abdominal wall
  • injuries to the anus
  • injuries to the buttock
  • injuries to the external genitalia
7th characterDiffers
S31.61A
  • The appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category S31
S38.3
  • The appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category S38

No Code first and Use additional code 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, notes every code shares are dimmed.

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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