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S91.229A vs S91.229D

S91.229A (Laceration with foreign body of unspecified toe(s) with damage to nail, initial encounter) compared with S91.229D (Laceration with foreign body of unspecified toe(s) with damage to nail, subsequent encounter), from the official CMS tabular data. S91.229A and S91.229D code the same injury at a different phase of treatment.

Relationship

Review

Encounter relationship

S91.229A
Initial encounter
Laceration with foreign body of unspecified toe(s) with damage to nail, initial encounter
↔
S91.229D
Subsequent encounter
Laceration with foreign body of unspecified toe(s) with damage to nail, subsequent encounter

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. S91.229A and S91.229D 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

S91.229ALaceration with foreign body of unspecified toe(s) with damage to nail, initial encounterS91.229DLaceration with foreign body of unspecified toe(s) with damage to nail, subsequent encounter
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)
DefinitionLaceration with foreign body of unspecified toe(s) with damage to nail, initial encounter is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (S91.229A).Laceration with foreign body of unspecified toe(s) with damage to nail, subsequent encounter is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (S91.229D).
7th characterThe appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category S91The appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category S91
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Derived from the official CMS ICD-10-CM tabular data (FY2026). Not billing advice; verify sequencing rules for the encounter. All data sources