J34.831 ICD-10-CM Code: Odontogenic sinusitis, ethmoid sinus

Coding instructions

Official Tabular Instructional Notes: the inclusion, exclusion and sequencing notes published for J34.831 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 J34.831 itself; “inherited from” names the category or block whose note applies here.

Coder workflow for J34.831

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

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).

Official instructions as workflow

• Excludes2 — not part of J34.831(1 note)

  Coding workflow: The conditions named in this note are not included in J34.831. When the record documents both, both may be reported; the note is a boundary, not a prohibition.

  CompareI86.8

  See the official tabular notes · Guidelines I.A.12.b

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.

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.

• Sinusitis (accessory) (chronic) (hyperplastic) (nasal) (nonpurulent) (purulent), odontogenic NOS, ethmoid sinus

Don’t confuse J34.831 with…

MedCoder analysis — pairs from this code’s official notes, distinctions written by MedCoder

The codes most likely to be picked instead of J34.831 — named in its own official notes, or sharing its laterality or encounter family — with what separates them and which documentation moves the case. Each links to the full comparison.

• J34.839— Specificity relationship (Review)

  Overlapping diagnoses in the same category.

  Overlapping codes in the same category — the documentation decides which is the more specific fit.

  What moves you there: A record that documents no more than “Odontogenic sinusitis, unspecified” takes J34.839; specificity in the record moves it back here.

  Full comparison: J34.831 vs J34.839 →

• I86.8— Excludes2 relationship (Informational)

  Distinct conditions — both may be reported.

  A distinct condition — both may be reported when both are documented.

  What moves you there: Documentation of varicose ulcer of nasal septum adds I86.8; it is not part of this code and both may be reported when both are documented.

  Full comparison: J34.831 vs I86.8 →

Relationships are read from this code's own official notes, its laterality siblings and its encounter family; the wording of each distinction is MedCoder editorial, and the documentation named in each “what moves you there” line is the official note phrase or sibling title itself. Source: CMS ICD-10-CM tabular instructional notes; ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines, Section I.A.12.a.

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.

Related Codes

Same Index main term, other category

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

J01.01 — Acute recurrent maxillary sinusitis (acute, maxillary, recurrent), J01.10 — Acute frontal sinusitis, unspecified (acute, frontal), J01.11 — Acute recurrent frontal sinusitis (acute, frontal, recurrent), J01.20 — Acute ethmoidal sinusitis, unspecified (acute, ethmoidal), J01.21 — Acute recurrent ethmoidal sinusitis (ethmoidal, acute, recurrent), J01.30 — Acute sphenoidal sinusitis, unspecified (acute, sphenoidal), J01.31 — Acute recurrent sphenoidal sinusitis (acute, sphenoidal, recurrent), J01.40 — Acute pansinusitis, unspecified (acute, pansinusitis), J01.41 — Acute recurrent pansinusitis (acute, pansinusitis, recurrent), J01.80 — Other acute sinusitis (acute, specified NEC), J01.81 — Other acute recurrent sinusitis (acute, specified NEC, recurrent), J01.90 — Acute sinusitis, unspecified (acute), J01.91 — Acute recurrent sinusitis, unspecified (acute, recurrent), J32.0 — Chronic maxillary sinusitis (maxillary), J32.1 — Chronic frontal sinusitis (frontal), J32.2 — Chronic ethmoidal sinusitis (ethmoidal), J32.3 — Chronic sphenoidal sinusitis (sphenoidal), J32.8 — Other chronic sinusitis (involving more than one sinus but not pansinusitis), J32.9 — Chronic sinusitis, unspecified, T70.1 — Sinus barotrauma (due to high altitude), +2 more

Contextual Map

Every relationship of J34.831 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.

Hierarchy

• J00-J99 — Chapter 10: Diseases of the Respiratory System (J00-J99) (J00-J99)[Hierarchy]— CMS ICD-10-CM tabular structure · icd10cm-fy2026
• J30-J39 — Other diseases of upper respiratory tract[Hierarchy]— CMS ICD-10-CM tabular structure · icd10cm-fy2026

Index entries

• Sinusitis (accessory) (chronic) (hyperplastic) (nasal) (nonpurulent) (purulent), odontogenic NOS, ethmoid sinus[Index term]— CMS ICD-10-CM Index to Diseases and Injuries · icd10cm-fy2026

Nearest codes (24)

• J34 — Other and unspecified disorders of nose and nasal sinuses[Sibling]— CMS ICD-10-CM tabular structure · icd10cm-fy2026
• J34.0 — Abscess, furuncle and carbuncle of nose[Sibling]— CMS ICD-10-CM tabular structure · icd10cm-fy2026
• J34.1 — Cyst and mucocele of nose and nasal sinus[Sibling]— CMS ICD-10-CM tabular structure · icd10cm-fy2026
• J34.2 — Deviated nasal septum[Sibling]— CMS ICD-10-CM tabular structure · icd10cm-fy2026
• J34.3 — Hypertrophy of nasal turbinates[Sibling]— CMS ICD-10-CM tabular structure · icd10cm-fy2026
• J34.8 — Other specified disorders of nose and nasal sinuses[Sibling]— CMS ICD-10-CM tabular structure · icd10cm-fy2026
• J34.81 — Nasal mucositis (ulcerative)[Sibling]— CMS ICD-10-CM tabular structure · icd10cm-fy2026
• J34.82 — Nasal valve collapse[Sibling]— CMS ICD-10-CM tabular structure · icd10cm-fy2026
• and 16 more

Change history

• FY2027 — Will be added to the code set[Change history]— CMS release files (code change ledger) · icd10cm-fy2027

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

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

Nearest Codes in This Family

Official ICD-10-CM classifications closest to J34.831 in its code family, with their registry titles.

• J34.8211 — External nasal valve collapse, static
• J34.8212 — External nasal valve collapse, dynamic
• J34.829 — Nasal valve collapse, unspecified
• J34.83 — Odontogenic sinusitis
• J34.830 — Odontogenic sinusitis, maxillary sinus
• J34.832 — Odontogenic sinusitis, frontal sinus
• J34.833 — Odontogenic sinusitis, sphenoid sinus
• J34.839 — Odontogenic sinusitis, unspecified
• J34.89 — Other specified disorders of nose and nasal sinuses
• J34.9 — Unspecified disorder of nose and nasal sinuses

View all codes in the J34 family