S06.8 vs S15.0
S06.8 and S15.0 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 S15.0
injury of internal carotid artery, intracranial portion (S06.8)
S06.8
Other specified intracranial injuries
Not billable
- Chapter 19
- Injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes
- Section
- S00-S09
Indexed under
- Injury › blood vessel NEC › carotid artery › internal, intracranial
S15.0
Injury of carotid artery of neck
Not billable
- Chapter 19
- Injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes
- Section
- S10-S19
Use when the record says
- Injury of carotid artery (common) (external) (internal, extracranial portion)
- Injury of carotid artery NOS
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