K44 — Diaphragmatic hernia
Is K44 billable?
No — K44 is a non-billable header code. K44 groups more specific codes and cannot be submitted on a claim. A valid ICD-10-CM code must be reported at the highest level of specificity available in its branch. Select one of the 3 billable codes beneath K44.
K44 at a glance
| Code | K44 |
|---|---|
| Description | Diaphragmatic hernia |
| Billable | No — header code |
| Code set | ICD-10-CM FY2027 |
| Valid for encounters | October 1, 2026 – September 30, 2027 |
Excludes1 — never code together
The conditions below can never be reported together with K44 on the same claim. An Excludes1 note means the two conditions cannot occur in the same patient, so reporting both is a coding error.
Includes
Conditions classified to K44.
- hiatus hernia (esophageal) (sliding)
- paraesophageal hernia
Excludes2 — not included here — inherited from Chapter 11
The conditions below are not part of K44, but a patient may have both at the same time. When documentation supports it, K44 and the excluded code may both be reported.
- certain conditions originating in the perinatal period (P04-P96)
- certain infectious and parasitic diseases (A00-B99)
- complications of pregnancy, childbirth and the puerperium (O00-O9A)
- congenital malformations, deformations and chromosomal abnormalities (Q00-Q99)
- endocrine, nutritional and metabolic diseases (E00-E88)
- injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes (S00-T88)
- neoplasms (C00-D49)
- symptoms, signs and abnormal clinical and laboratory findings, not elsewhere classified (R00-R94)
What codes fall under K44? (3)
How long has K44 existed?
K44 has been in ICD-10-CM since at least FY2016, the earliest fiscal year on record here.
Derived from the official order files for FY2016–FY2026. FY2017 and FY2020 publish no order file, so those years are not covered.
Which codes are confused with K44?
ICD-10-CM declares these codes mutually exclusive with K44 — exactly one of each pair can be correct for a given encounter.