Excludes1 pair
S06- vs S06.9-
S06 and S06.9 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 S06.9
conditions classifiable to S06.0- to S06.8-code to specified intracranial injury
S06
Intracranial injury
Not billable
- Chapter 19
- Injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes
- Section
- S00-S09
Use when the record says
- traumatic brain injury
S06.9
Unspecified intracranial injury
Not billable
- Chapter 19
- Injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes
- Section
- S00-S09
Use when the record says
- Brain injury NOS
- Head injury NOS with loss of consciousness
- Traumatic brain injury NOS
Indexed under
- TBI (traumatic brain injury)
- Injury › brain (traumatic)
- Injury › intracranial (traumatic) (see also, if applicable, Compression, brain, traumatic)
- Traumatic › brain injury
- Injury › head › with loss of consciousness
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