Skip to main content

G96.810 ICD-10-CM Code: Intracranial hypotension, unspecified

Billing Status: YES. This is a valid, specific, and billable ICD-10-CM reference.

Coding at a Glance

Tabular directives
14 code-also instructions

Inpatient Payment Groups (MS-DRG)

Potential MS-DRG participation — not a DRG assignment.

MS-DRGs this diagnosis helps define, as principal or secondary, per the CMS ICD-10-CM/PCS MS-DRG Definitions Manual v43, Appendix B.

  • MS-DRG 070 — OTHER CEREBROVASCULAR DISORDERS WITH MCC (MDC 01)
  • MS-DRG 071 — OTHER CEREBROVASCULAR DISORDERS WITH CC (MDC 01)
  • MS-DRG 072 — OTHER CEREBROVASCULAR DISORDERS WITHOUT CC/MCC (MDC 01)

A diagnosis appearing in a group's logic does not by itself determine the DRG assigned to a stay; the grouper uses the full claim.

Coding instructions

Official Tabular Instructional Notes: the inclusion, exclusion and sequencing notes published for G96.810 in the official ICD-10-CM tabular list, quoted as published.

Source: CMS/CDC — ICD-10-CM Tabular ListRelease: FY2026Effective: October 1, 2025

Notes without a marker are published on G96.810 itself; “inherited from” names the category or block whose note applies here.

Code Also

Additional codes that may be required to fully describe the encounter.

  • any associated diagnoses, such as:
  • Brachial amyotrophy (G54.5)
  • Cerebrospinal fluid leak from spine (G96.02)
  • Cranial nerve disorders in diseases classified elsewhere (G53)
  • Nerve root and compressions in diseases classified elsewhere (G55)
  • Nonpyogenic thrombosis of intracranial venous system (I67.6)
  • Nontraumatic intracerebral hemorrhage (I61.-)
  • Nontraumatic subdural hemorrhage (I62.0-)
  • Other and unspecified cord compression (G95.2-)
  • Other secondary parkinsonism (G21.8)
  • Reversible cerebrovascular vasoconstriction syndrome (I67.841)
  • Spinal cord herniation (G95.89)
  • Stroke (I63.-)
  • Syringomyelia (G95.0)

Source: inherited from G96.81

Coder workflow for G96.810

MedCoder structured workflow — derived from this code’s own official record

Before you code G96.810

  1. Unspecified does not mean incorrect. When the record gives no greater specificity, G96.810 may be the appropriate code. Check the record for detail that supports a more specific sibling. An unspecified code is for records that do not provide the detail a more specific code needs; a query, not an assumption, is the route to specificity (Guidelines I.A.9.b, I.B.18).

    ReviewG96.811, G96.819

    See the relationships section · Guide: Other vs unspecified (NEC vs NOS) →

Choose the right path

  1. Does the record document the detail a more specific sibling code needs?
    Yes → Review the specific siblings in this subcategory.
    No → Continue — G96.810 is appropriate when the documentation goes no further.

    ReviewG96.811, G96.819

Consider G96.810. Then review the Code Also note, and confirm the code is valid for the date of service in the Verify section.

Documentation check

The provider’s diagnostic statement
Codes are assigned from the provider’s documented diagnosis, not from clinical criteria, test values or a medication list (Guidelines I.A.19).
Any detail beyond this code’s title
What the record states that a more specific sibling code would capture — or its absence, which itself supports the unspecified code.

Official instructions as workflow

  • Code Also — related condition(14 notes)

    Coding workflow: Review the related condition when both are documented and the instruction applies. A Code Also note does not fix sequencing; the order follows the circumstances of the encounter.

    ReviewG54.5, G96.02, G53, G55, I67.6, I61

    See the official tabular notes · Guidelines I.A.17

Coding decision scenarios

Pattern scenarios for this code’s structure — decision rules, not clinical cases

Documentation: The provider documents the condition in the terms of this code’s title and records no further detail.

Coding question: Is a more specific sibling code supportable?

Path: Review the specific siblings in this subcategory and what each requires the record to state.

Reason: A more specific code needs documentation of the distinguishing element; without it the unspecified code is appropriate, and a provider query is the route to specificity (Guidelines I.A.9.b, I.B.18).

ReviewG96.811, G96.819

Every row is derived from this code’s own record — its title, tabular notes, 7th-character family and same-category siblings — with fixed MedCoder wording; nothing is inferred about a patient. The official notes and guideline text are in the sections each row links to, and they control.

Code Overview

Intracranial hypotension, unspecified is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (G96.810).

MedCoder summary Summary composed by MedCoder from this code's official ICD-10-CM record. The tabular instructional notes themselves appear verbatim below.

Indexed Clinical Terms (1)

Official source data — entries quoted as published, in the Index’s own lookup phrasing

Clinical term phrases from the official ICD-10-CM Index to Diseases and Injuries that map to this code. These are alphabetic-index entries shown as the Index writes them — lookup phrasing, not necessarily the wording of a final diagnosis.

Verify Before Coding

  • No Medicare Code Editor or MS-DRG Definitions Manual restrictions apply to this code.

From the code registry, the Medicare Code Editor, and the MS-DRG Definitions Manual. Check it against a full claim in Claim Check.

Relationships & Classification

MedCoder structured relationships — computed from published CMS and AHRQ datasets

Other codes that name G96.810 or its code family, from the CMS ICD-10-CM tabular instructional notes. Tabular-note edges are stored at the code family level that carries each note.

Referenced by 2 Code Also instructions: G96.0 — Cerebrospinal fluid leak (via G96.81.-), G96.11 — Dural tear (via G96.81.-).

These codes suggest coding this condition alongside when both are present.

MS-DRG Grouper Relationships (FY2026)

Potential MS-DRG participation — not a DRG assignment.

FY2026 MS-DRG: not on the CMS CC/MCC list — as a secondary diagnosis this code does not change MS-DRG severity for that release.

Named in the grouper logic of 3 MS-DRGs: DRG 070 (MDC 01), DRG 071 (MDC 01), DRG 072 (MDC 01).

From the CMS MS-DRG Definitions Manual (Appendices B and C). Actual DRG assignment depends on the complete claim.

Clinical classification (AHRQ CCSR):NVS020 — Other nervous system disorders (neither hereditary nor degenerative) (default).

Clinical Classifications Software Refined (CCSR) for ICD-10-CM Diagnoses. Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP), Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

Related Codes

Same clinical category (CCSR)

AHRQ's Clinical Classifications Software groups these diagnoses under the same clinical category (Other nervous system disorders (neither hereditary nor degenerative)).

G96.01 — Cranial cerebrospinal fluid leak, spontaneous, G96.02 — Spinal cerebrospinal fluid leak, spontaneous, G96.08 — Other cranial cerebrospinal fluid leak, G96.09 — Other spinal cerebrospinal fluid leak, G96.11 — Dural tear, G96.12 — Meningeal adhesions (cerebral) (spinal), G96.19 — Other disorders of meninges, not elsewhere classified, G96.191 — Perineural cyst, G96.198 — Other disorders of meninges, not elsewhere classified, G96.8 — Other specified disorders of central nervous system, G96.811 — Intracranial hypotension, spontaneous, G96.819 — Other intracranial hypotension, G96.89 — Other specified disorders of central nervous system, G96.9 — Disorder of central nervous system, unspecified, G98.0 — Neurogenic arthritis, not elsewhere classified, G98.8 — Other disorders of nervous system, G99.8 — Other specified disorders of nervous system in diseases classified elsewhere, I67.3 — Progressive vascular leukoencephalopathy, I67.4 — Hypertensive encephalopathy, J10.81 — Influenza due to other identified influenza virus with encephalopathy, +97 more

Same Index main term, other category

The ICD-10-CM Index to Diseases and Injuries files this code under the main term “Hypotension”; these codes share that main term but sit in a different category of the Tabular List.

G90.3 — Multi-system degeneration of the autonomic nervous system (orthostatic, neurogenic), G97.2 — Intracranial hypotension following ventricular shunting (intracranial, following, ventricular shunting), G97.83 — Intracranial hypotension following lumbar cerebrospinal fluid shunting (intracranial, following, lumbar cerebrospinal fluid shunting), G97.84 — Intracranial hypotension following other procedure (intracranial, following, specified procedure NEC), I95.0 — Idiopathic hypotension (idiopathic), I95.1 — Orthostatic hypotension (postural), I95.2 — Hypotension due to drugs (drug-induced), I95.3 — Hypotension of hemodialysis (intra-dialytic), I95.81 — Postprocedural hypotension (postoperative), I95.89 — Other hypotension (chronic), I95.9 — Hypotension, unspecified, O26.5 — Maternal hypotension syndrome (maternal, syndrome)

Lab tests where this diagnosis supports Medicare coverage (NCD)

Medicare's National Coverage Determination (NCD) program lists this diagnosis as medical justification for these lab tests.

Partial Thromboplastin Time (PTT) Test, Prothrombin Time Test and INR (PT/INR)

Contextual Map

Every relationship of G96.810 in one view: hierarchy, official tabular instructions in both directions, clinical classification, risk adjustment, MS-DRG participation, index terms and change history — each edge carrying the CMS source it derives from.

Run G96.810 with these 2 related codes in Claim Check

Hierarchy

Referenced by Code Also instructions

  • G96.0 — Cerebrospinal fluid leak[Code Also](via G96.81.-): “intracranial hypotension (G96.81-)”— CMS ICD-10-CM tabular instructional notes · icd10cm-fy2026
  • G96.11 — Dural tear[Code Also](via G96.81.-): “intracranial hypotension, if applicable (G96.81-)”— CMS ICD-10-CM tabular instructional notes · icd10cm-fy2026

Clinical classification (CCSR)

MS-DRG Grouper

MDC crossing

  • MDC 01 — Diseases and Disorders of the Nervous System[MDC crossing]: “Diseases and Disorders of the Nervous System — the grouper's crossing between diagnoses and procedures: a principal diagnosis sets the MDC, and same-MDC procedures move the stay to its surgical DRGs. 8,892 same-MDC procedures group here; browse them on the MDC page.”— CMS MS-DRG Definitions Manual · FY2026

Index entries

  • Hypotension (arterial) (constitutional), intracranial[Index term]— CMS ICD-10-CM Index to Diseases and Injuries · icd10cm-fy2026

Nearest codes (19)

Change history

Sources for this page

Codes, titles, notes, index terms and mappings on this page are transcribed from the datasets below. Relationships MedCoder computed and text MedCoder wrote are labelled where they appear.

Code, title, tabular notes and index terms Official source data
CMS/CDC ICD-10-CM FY2026 tabular list, index and tables, effective October 1, 2025 Release, file and checksum · Publisher’s page
Claim edits Official source data
CMS Definitions of Medicare Code Edits — v43.1 (April 2026) Release, file and checksum · Publisher’s page
Inpatient payment groups Official source data
CMS MS-DRG Definitions Manual (incl. Appendix B diagnosis index, Appendix C CC/MCC list, Appendix E procedure index) and IPPS Final Rule tables — v43 Release, file and checksum · Publisher’s page
Change history and date-of-service validity Official source data
CMS ICD-10-CM release addenda, ingested release by release into the change ledger Release, file and checksum · Publisher’s page
Comparisons, relationships and the contextual map MedCoder structured relationship
Computed by MedCoder from the tabular notes and tables above; every derived relationship is marked as derived where it appears
Summary and FAQ answers MedCoder explanation
Written by MedCoder to explain the sources above: drafted with AI assistance, checked by a person against the release files, and labelled as MedCoder text where it appears. Not official text.

Labels on this page: Official source data · MedCoder structured relationship · MedCoder explanation. How to read the labels · All data sources and release dates

Cite this page

Reference this page in a research guide, syllabus or article. The release is included because code content changes each year.

MedCoder.ai. "G96.810 — Intracranial hypotension, unspecified." ICD-10-CM FY2026. https://medcoder.ai/icd10/code/g96.810-intracranial-hypotension-unspecified

Change history

  • FY2021 — October 1, 2020
    Added to the code set
    Intracranial hypotension, unspecified
    FY2021 changes

Nearest Codes in This Family

Official ICD-10-CM classifications closest to G96.810 in its code family, with their registry titles.

View all codes in the G96 family