Excludes1 pair

A06.4 vs K75.0

A06.4 and K75.0 are not coded together. ICD-10-CM declares them mutually exclusive with an Excludes1 note — the two conditions are not expected to occur together, so exactly one of them is normally correct for a given encounter. The Official Guidelines carve out one exception: if the two conditions are clearly unrelated to each other, both may be reported.

The official note, declared on K75.0
amebic liver abscess (A06.4)
A06.4

Amebic liver abscess

Billable
Chapter 1
Certain infectious and parasitic diseases
Section
A00-A09
Use when the record says
  • Hepatic amebiasis
Indexed under
  • Abscess › amebic
  • Ameba, amebic › abscess (liver)
  • Dysentery, dysenteric › abscess, liver
  • Abscess › amebic › liver (without mention of brain or lung abscess)
  • Abscess › hepatic › amebic
K75.0

Abscess of liver

Billable
Chapter 11
Diseases of the digestive system
Section
K70-K77
Use when the record says
  • Cholangitic hepatic abscess
  • Hematogenic hepatic abscess
  • Hepatic abscess NOS
  • Lymphogenic hepatic abscess
  • Pylephlebitic hepatic abscess
Indexed under
  • Abscess › hepatic (cholangitic) (hematogenic) (lymphogenic) (pylephlebitic)
  • Abscess › liver (cholangitic) (hematogenic) (lymphogenic) (pylephlebitic) (pyogenic)
  • Inflammation, inflamed, inflammatory › liver › suppurative

These two codes sit in different chapters of the Tabular List, which is usually the clearest signal that they describe different underlying processes rather than different degrees of the same one.

Excludes1 is not always absolute: where two conditions covered by the note are genuinely unrelated, CMS guidance permits reporting both. Document the reasoning rather than assuming it. More on Excludes1 vs Excludes2 · FY2027