T15 vs T15-T19
T15 (Foreign body on external eye) compared with T15-T19 (Effects of foreign body entering through natural orifice (T15-T19)), from the official CMS tabular data.
Summary
These codes represent different levels of the same hierarchy: T15 is the non-billable header that contains T15-T19, so only T15-T19 (or a sibling) is reported.
Registry fact- What is different?
The conditions named.T15 is “Foreign body on external eye”; T15-T19 is “Effects of foreign body entering through natural orifice (T15-T19)”.
Registry fact
- Can these codes be reported together?
Not as a pair.T15 is the non-billable header that contains T15-T19. A header is not reported on a claim, so the choice is T15-T19 or a sibling that matches the documentation.
Registry fact
- Is there an Excludes1 relationship?
None.Neither entry carries an Excludes1 note that names the other code.
Official rule
- Is there an Excludes2 relationship?
None.Neither entry carries an Excludes2 note that names the other code. T15 carries 9 Excludes2 notes and T15-T19 carries 4 Excludes2 notes covering other codes; the side-by-side table quotes them.
Official rule
- Is one more specific?
Yes.T15-T19 is a subdivision of T15 in the tabular hierarchy, so it is the more specific of the two.
Registry fact
- Is one a parent or header code?
Yes.T15 is the non-billable header that contains T15-T19. A header stands for the whole family beneath it and is not reported on a claim.
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?
None found.No laterality, encounter-phase, Table of Neoplasms, Table of Drugs and Chemicals, or history-versus-active-disease relationship links these codes.
MedCoder-derived
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. How to read the labels
Can these codes be reported together?
Not as a pair — T15 is not reportable. T15 is the non-billable category that contains T15-T19.
A header stands for the whole family of codes beneath it and is not reported on a claim, so the choice is T15-T19 or a sibling that matches the documentation. No Excludes1/Excludes2 relationship exists between these codes in the official tabular list.
Official guidance behind these answers
Section I.B.2 — Level of Detail in Coding · applies to: T15 and T15-T19
Diagnosis codes are to be used and reported at their highest number of characters available and to the highest level of specificity documented in the medical record. ICD-10-CM diagnosis codes are composed of codes with 3, 4, 5, 6 or 7 characters. Codes with three characters are included in ICD-10-CM as the heading of a category of codes that may be further subdivided by the use of fourth and/or fifth characters and/or sixth characters, which provide greater detail. A three-character code is to be used only if it is not further subdivided. A code is invalid if it has not been coded to the full number of characters required for that code, including the 7th character, if applicable.
ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines FY2026
Quoted from the ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines for Coding and Reporting in effect for the release shown. The tabular notes above are the code-level instruction; these sections are the convention that says how such a note is applied. Source document (CMS PDF) · Release and checksum
Side by side
| T15Foreign body on external eye | T15-T19Effects of foreign body entering through natural orifice (T15-T19) | |
|---|---|---|
| Billing status | Non-billable header Report instead: T15.00XA, T15.00XD, T15.00XS, T15.01XA, T15.01XD | Non-billable header |
| 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 | Foreign body on external eye is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (T15). | Effects of foreign body entering through natural orifice (T15-T19) is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (T15-T19). |
| 7th character | The appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category T15 | — |
| Excludes2 | foreign body in penetrating wound of orbit and eye ball (S05.4-, S05.5-) open wound of eyelid and periocular area (S01.1-) retained foreign body in eyelid (H02.8-) retained (old) foreign body in penetrating wound of orbit and eye ball (H05.5-, H44.6-, H44.7-) superficial foreign body of eyelid and periocular area (S00.25-) foreign body accidentally left in operation wound (T81.5-) foreign body in penetrating wound - See open wound by body region residual foreign body in soft tissue (M79.5) splinter, without open wound - See superficial injury by body region | foreign body accidentally left in operation wound (T81.5-) foreign body in penetrating wound - See open wound by body region residual foreign body in soft tissue (M79.5) splinter, without open wound - See superficial injury by body region |
| Use additional code | code, if known, for foreign body entering into or through a natural orifice (W44.-) | code, if known, for foreign body entering into or through a natural orifice (W44.-) |
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.
Derived from the official CMS ICD-10-CM tabular data (FY2027). A coding-rule comparison, not billing advice: payer-specific edits and medical-necessity policy are outside its scope. All data sources