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S90.472S vs S90.473S

S90.472S (Other superficial bite of left great toe, sequela) compared with S90.473S (Other superficial bite of unspecified great toe, sequela), from the official CMS tabular data.

Summary

These codes name the same condition on opposite sides of the body, so the documented side decides which one applies.

MedCoder-derived
What is different?

Title wording.The titles differ in one word, “left” (S90.472S) versus “unspecified” (S90.473S): S90.472S is “Other superficial bite of left great toe, sequela”; S90.473S is “Other superficial bite of unspecified great toe, sequela”.

Registry fact

Can these codes be reported together?

One side per condition.S90.472S and S90.473S 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.

MedCoder-derivedGuide: Laterality coding

Is there an Excludes1 relationship?

None.Neither entry carries an Excludes1 note that names the other code. S90.472S carries 1 Excludes1 note and S90.473S carries 1 Excludes1 note covering other codes; the side-by-side table quotes them.

Official rule

Is there an Excludes2 relationship?

None.Neither entry carries an Excludes2 note that names the other code. S90.472S carries 4 Excludes2 notes and S90.473S carries 4 Excludes2 notes covering other codes; the side-by-side table quotes them.

Official rule

Is one more specific?

Yes.S90.472S’s title names the condition; S90.473S’s title is the unspecified form (“Other superficial bite of unspecified great toe, sequela”).

MedCoder-derivedGuide: Other vs unspecified (NEC vs NOS)

Is one a parent or header code?

No.Both are billable codes, 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?

Yes.Same condition, opposite side. S90.472S and S90.473S name the same condition on opposite sides of the body.

MedCoder-derivedGuide: Laterality coding

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.

Can these codes be reported together?

Review

Laterality relationship

S90.472S
Left
Other superficial bite of left great toe, sequela
↔
S90.473S
Unspecified
Other superficial bite of unspecified great toe, sequela

What we found

Same condition, opposite side.S90.472S and S90.473S 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.

What to review

Report the side the documentation names. Where the code set provides a bilateral code and both sides are documented, use it instead of the pair.

Guide: Laterality codingCheck these on a claim

Why it matters

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 / rule

ICD-10-CM tabular list (laterality variant derived from the code title)

Side by side

S90.472SOther superficial bite of left great toe, sequelaS90.473SOther superficial bite of unspecified great toe, sequela
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)
DefinitionOther superficial bite of left great toe, sequela is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (S90.472S).Other superficial bite of unspecified great toe, sequela is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (S90.473S).
7th characterThe appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category S90The appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category S90
Excludes1
open bite of toe (S91.15-, S91.25-)
open bite of toe (S91.15-, S91.25-)
Excludes2
burns and corrosions (T20-T32)
fracture of ankle and malleolus (S82.-)
frostbite (T33-T34)
insect bite or sting, venomous (T63.4)
burns and corrosions (T20-T32)
fracture of ankle and malleolus (S82.-)
frostbite (T33-T34)
insect bite or sting, venomous (T63.4)

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.

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Derived from the official CMS ICD-10-CM tabular data (FY2026). A coding-rule comparison, not billing advice: payer-specific edits and medical-necessity policy are outside its scope. All data sources