K72 vs K76.2
K72 and K76.2 can never be reported together. ICD-10-CM declares them mutually exclusive with an Excludes1 note, meaning the two conditions cannot occur in the same patient — so exactly one of them is correct for any given encounter.
The official note, declared on K76.2
liver necrosis with hepatic failure (K72.-)
K72
Hepatic failure, not elsewhere classified
Not billable
- Chapter 11
- Diseases of the digestive system
- Section
- K70-K77
Use when the record says
- fulminant hepatitis NEC, with hepatic failure
- liver (cell) necrosis with hepatic failure
- malignant hepatitis NEC, with hepatic failure
- yellow liver atrophy or dystrophy
K76.2
Central hemorrhagic necrosis of liver
Billable
- Chapter 11
- Diseases of the digestive system
- Section
- K70-K77
Indexed under
- Necrosis, necrotic › liver › hemorrhagic, central (ischemic)
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