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S52.122A vs S52.122Q

S52.122A (Displaced fracture of head of left radius, initial encounter for closed fracture) compared with S52.122Q (Displaced fracture of head of left radius, subsequent encounter for open fracture type I or II with malunion), from the official CMS tabular data. S52.122A and S52.122Q code the same injury at a different phase of treatment.

Relationship

Review

Encounter relationship

S52.122A
Initial encounter
Displaced fracture of head of left radius, initial encounter for closed fracture
S52.122Q
Subsequent encounter
Displaced fracture of head of left radius, subsequent encounter for open fracture type I or II with malunion

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

Can these codes be reported together?

Same injury, other encounter phase. S52.122A and S52.122Q 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.

Side by side

S52.122ADisplaced fracture of head of left radius, initial encounter for closed fractureS52.122QDisplaced fracture of head of left radius, subsequent encounter for open fracture type I or II with malunion
Billing statusBillableBillable
ClassificationS00-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)
DefinitionDisplaced fracture of head of left radius, initial encounter for closed fracture is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (S52.122A).Displaced fracture of head of left radius, subsequent encounter for open fracture type I or II with malunion is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (S52.122Q).
7th characterThe appropriate 7th character is to be added to all codes from category S52The appropriate 7th character is to be added to all codes from category S52

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