S82.046A (Nondisplaced comminuted fracture of unspecified patella, initial encounter for closed fracture) compared with S82.046S (Nondisplaced comminuted fracture of unspecified patella, sequela), from the official CMS tabular data. S82.046A and S82.046S code the same injury at a different phase of treatment.
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. S82.046A and S82.046S 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.
| S82.046ANondisplaced comminuted fracture of unspecified patella, initial encounter for closed fracture | S82.046SNondisplaced comminuted fracture of unspecified patella, sequela | |
|---|---|---|
| Billing status | Billable | Billable |
| 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 | Nondisplaced comminuted fracture of unspecified patella, initial encounter for closed fracture is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (S82.046A). | Nondisplaced comminuted fracture of unspecified patella, sequela is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (S82.046S). |
| 7th character | The appropriate 7th character is to be added to all codes from category S82 | The appropriate 7th character is to be added to all codes from category S82 |
| Includes | fracture of malleolus | fracture of malleolus |
Derived from the official CMS ICD-10-CM tabular data (FY2026). Not billing advice; verify sequencing rules for the encounter. All data sources