Skip to main content

T79.7 ICD-10-CM Code: Traumatic subcutaneous emphysema

Billing Status: NO. This is a clinician non-billable / parent hierarchy grouping in the ICD-10-CM system.

Coding at a Glance

7th character
Required — see the character table on this page
Tabular directives
6 Excludes2

Coding instructions

Official Tabular Instructional Notes: the inclusion, exclusion and sequencing notes published for T79.7 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 T79.7 itself; “inherited from” names the category or block whose note applies here.

Excludes2 — Not Included Here

Conditions not covered by this code, but which may be reported alongside it when both are present.

7th Character Guide

"The appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category T79"

  • A — initial encounter
  • D — subsequent encounter
  • S — sequela

How the encounter character is assigned. “Initial encounter” means the patient is receiving active treatment for the condition — it is not limited to the first visit, and a different or new provider giving active treatment still assigns it. “Subsequent encounter” covers care during the healing or recovery phase after active treatment. “Sequela” is for complications or conditions that arise as a direct result of the original condition.

ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines for Coding and Reporting, Section I.C.19.a (paraphrased by MedCoder).

Variant codes in this family

T79.7XXA, T79.7XXD, T79.7XXS

Character meanings are CMS's official 7th-character extensions for this family, as carried in each variant code's official description; variant codes are registry rows. The explanation of how the encounter character is assigned is MedCoder editorial, distinct from the official content above it.

Coder workflow for T79.7

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

Before you code T79.7

  1. T79.7 is not reportable as written. Select the more specific code beneath it that the documentation supports. Codes are reported to the highest level of specificity the classification provides (Guidelines I.B.2).

    ReviewT79.7XXA, T79.7XXD, T79.7XXS

    See the relationships section · Guide: How to choose an ICD-10-CM code →

  2. A 7th character is required in this family. Confirm the documented encounter: initial (active treatment), subsequent (healing or recovery phase), or sequela. T79.7 is not valid without one. “Initial” means active treatment, not the first visit (Guidelines I.C.19.a).

    See the 7th Character Guide · Guide: 7th characters: initial, subsequent, sequela →

Choose the right path

  1. Does the documentation support one of the more specific codes beneath T79.7?
    Yes → Select that code and continue the checks below on its own page.
    No → T79.7 cannot be reported as written; query for the specificity its subcategory needs.

    ReviewT79.7XXA, T79.7XXD, T79.7XXS

  2. Is the encounter phase documented — active treatment, healing or recovery, or a sequela?
    Yes → Assign the matching 7th character; the variant codes are in the 7th Character Guide.
    No → The code is invalid without its 7th character — query for the missing element.

Consider T79.7. Then 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).
Encounter type
Active treatment, healing or recovery phase, or sequela — the basis of the 7th character (Guidelines I.C.19.a).

Official instructions as workflow

  • Excludes2 — not part of T79.7(6 notes)

    Coding workflow: The conditions named in this note are not included in T79.7. When the record documents both, both may be reported; the note is a boundary, not a prohibition.

    CompareJ43, T81.82, J80, P22.0

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

Coding decision scenarios

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

Documentation: The patient returns during the healing or recovery phase after active treatment of the same condition.

Coding question: Which 7th character applies?

Path: Review the official 7th-character definitions for this family in the 7th Character Guide.

Reason: “Initial encounter” means active treatment, not the first visit; care during recovery takes “subsequent encounter”, and a complication arising from the original condition takes “sequela” (Guidelines I.C.19.a).

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

Traumatic subcutaneous emphysema is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (T79.7). A more specific billable subcode must be selected for claims submission.

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 (7)

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

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 T79.7 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 1 Excludes1 note: J98.2 — Interstitial emphysema.

These codes’ tabular lists mark this diagnosis as mutually exclusive — not reported together unless the conditions are documented as unrelated.

Referenced by 1 Excludes2 note: J43 — Emphysema.

These codes’ tabular lists name this diagnosis as distinct — both may be reported when both are documented.

Related Codes

Same Index main term, other category

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

E32.8 — Other diseases of thymus (thymus), H11.89 — Other specified disorders of conjunctiva (conjunctiva), J43.0 — Unilateral pulmonary emphysema [MacLeod's syndrome] (unilateral), J43.1 — Panlobular emphysema (panacinar), J43.2 — Centrilobular emphysema (centrilobular), J43.8 — Other emphysema (specified NEC), J43.9 — Emphysema, unspecified, J98.2 — Interstitial emphysema (mediastinal), J98.3 — Compensatory emphysema (compensatory), P25.0 — Interstitial emphysema originating in the perinatal period (congenital), P25.2 — Pneumomediastinum originating in the perinatal period (mediastinal, newborn), T81.82 — Emphysema (subcutaneous) resulting from a procedure (surgical)

Contextual Map

Every relationship of T79.7 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 T79.7 with these 3 related codes in Claim Check

Hierarchy

Excludes2

Referenced by Excludes1 notes

Referenced by Excludes2 notes

  • J43 — Emphysema[Excludes2]: “traumatic subcutaneous emphysema (T79.7)”— CMS ICD-10-CM tabular instructional notes · icd10cm-fy2026

Index entries

  • Aerodermectasia, subcutaneous (traumatic)[Index term]— CMS ICD-10-CM Index to Diseases and Injuries · icd10cm-fy2026
  • Emphysema (atrophic) (bullous) (chronic) (interlobular) (lung) (obstructive) (pulmonary) (senile) (vesicular), cellular tissue (traumatic)[Index term]— CMS ICD-10-CM Index to Diseases and Injuries · icd10cm-fy2026
  • Emphysema (atrophic) (bullous) (chronic) (interlobular) (lung) (obstructive) (pulmonary) (senile) (vesicular), connective tissue (traumatic)[Index term]— CMS ICD-10-CM Index to Diseases and Injuries · icd10cm-fy2026
  • Emphysema (atrophic) (bullous) (chronic) (interlobular) (lung) (obstructive) (pulmonary) (senile) (vesicular), eyelid (s), traumatic[Index term]— CMS ICD-10-CM Index to Diseases and Injuries · icd10cm-fy2026
  • Emphysema (atrophic) (bullous) (chronic) (interlobular) (lung) (obstructive) (pulmonary) (senile) (vesicular), laminated tissue[Index term]— CMS ICD-10-CM Index to Diseases and Injuries · icd10cm-fy2026
  • Emphysema (atrophic) (bullous) (chronic) (interlobular) (lung) (obstructive) (pulmonary) (senile) (vesicular), subcutaneous (traumatic)[Index term]— CMS ICD-10-CM Index to Diseases and Injuries · icd10cm-fy2026
  • Emphysema (atrophic) (bullous) (chronic) (interlobular) (lung) (obstructive) (pulmonary) (senile) (vesicular), traumatic (subcutaneous)[Index term]— CMS ICD-10-CM Index to Diseases and Injuries · icd10cm-fy2026

Nearest codes (40)

Change history

  • FY2016 — In the code set at ICD-10-CM adoption [Change history]— CMS release files (code change ledger) · icd10cm-fy2016

Common coding questions

Can T79.7 be billed directly?

No. T79.7 (Traumatic subcutaneous emphysema) is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code. A more specific billable subcode must be selected based on clinical documentation.

Does T79.7 require a 7th character?

Yes. The appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category T79.

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

Change history

  • FY2016 — October 1, 2015
    In the code set at ICD-10-CM adoption
    Traumatic subcutaneous emphysema

No changes since FY2016 — additions, deletions, description changes and billable-status changes are tracked through FY2027 (effective October 1, 2026), and none are recorded for this code. Note changes are tracked from FY2027 only.

Nearest Codes in This Family

Official ICD-10-CM classifications closest to T79.7 in its code family, with their registry titles.

View all codes in the T79 family