S52.346A (Nondisplaced spiral fracture of shaft of radius, unspecified arm, initial encounter for closed fracture) compared with S52.346S (Nondisplaced spiral fracture of shaft of radius, unspecified arm, sequela), from the official CMS tabular data. S52.346A and S52.346S code the same injury at a different phase of treatment. MedCoder-derived
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. S52.346A and S52.346S 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.
| S52.346ANondisplaced spiral fracture of shaft of radius, unspecified arm, initial encounter for closed fracture | S52.346SNondisplaced spiral fracture of shaft of radius, unspecified arm, sequela | |
|---|---|---|
| Billing status | Billable | Billable |
| Classification | S00-T88 — Injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes | S00-T88 — Injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes |
| Definition | Nondisplaced spiral fracture of shaft of radius, unspecified arm, initial encounter for closed fracture is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (S52.346A). | Nondisplaced spiral fracture of shaft of radius, unspecified arm, sequela is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (S52.346S). |
| 7th character | The appropriate 7th character is to be added to all codes from category S52 | The 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