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S51.002 vs S51.009

S51.002 (Unspecified open wound of left elbow) compared with S51.009 (Unspecified open wound of unspecified elbow), from the official CMS tabular data. S51.002 and S51.009 code the same condition on opposite sides. MedCoder-derived

Relationship

Review

Laterality relationship

S51.002
Left
Unspecified open wound of left elbow
S51.009
Unspecified
Unspecified open wound of unspecified elbow

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. S51.002 and S51.009 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

S51.002Unspecified open wound of left elbowS51.009Unspecified open wound of unspecified elbow
Billing statusNon-billable header

Report instead: S51.002A, S51.002D, S51.002S

Non-billable header

Report instead: S51.009A, S51.009D, S51.009S

ClassificationS00-T88 — Injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causesS00-T88 — Injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes
DefinitionUnspecified open wound of left elbow is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (S51.002).Unspecified open wound of unspecified elbow is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (S51.009).
7th characterThe appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category S51The appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category S51
Includes
Open wound of elbow NOS

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