Q05 vs Q76.0
Q05 and Q76.0 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 Q05
spina bifida occulta (Q76.0)
Q05
Spina bifida
Not billable
- Chapter 17
- Congenital malformations, deformations, chromosomal abnormalities, and genetic disorders
- Section
- Q00-Q07
Use when the record says
- hydromeningocele (spinal)
- meningocele (spinal)
- meningomyelocele
- myelocele
- myelomeningocele
- rachischisis
- spina bifida (aperta)(cystica)
- syringomyelocele
Q76.0
Spina bifida occulta
Billable
- Chapter 17
- Congenital malformations, deformations, chromosomal abnormalities, and genetic disorders
- Section
- Q65-Q79
Indexed under
- Spina bifida › occulta (aperta)
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