M43.3 — Recurrent atlantoaxial dislocation with myelopathy

Billable

Is M43.3 billable?

Yes — M43.3 is billable for FY2027. M43.3 is a valid, billable ICD-10-CM code at the highest level of specificity in its branch. M43.3 may be submitted for encounters from October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027.

M43.3 at a glance

Code	M43.3
Description	Recurrent atlantoaxial dislocation with myelopathy
Billable	Yes
Code set	ICD-10-CM FY2027
Valid for encounters	October 1, 2026 – September 30, 2027

Which MS-DRGs does M43.3 group to?

M43.3 sits in MDC 08 and helps define the logic of 3 MS-DRGs (version 44, FY2027). Which one a stay actually groups to also depends on procedures and secondary diagnoses.

564Other Musculoskeletal System and Connective Tissue Diagnoses with MCCmedical
565Other Musculoskeletal System and Connective Tissue Diagnoses with CCmedical
566Other Musculoskeletal System and Connective Tissue Diagnoses without CC/MCCmedical

How is M43.3 listed in the Alphabetic Index?

These are the routes through the Alphabetic Index that lead to M43.3. They show the wording a clinician may have documented, which often differs from the Tabular description.

Subluxation › atlantoaxial, recurrent › with myelopathy
Dislocation › recurrent › vertebra › atlantoaxial › with myelopathy (articular)

Excludes1 — never code together — inherited from M43

The conditions below can never be reported together with M43.3 on the same claim. An Excludes1 note means the two conditions cannot occur in the same patient, so reporting both is a coding error.

congenital spondylolysis and spondylolisthesis (Q76.2)
hemivertebra (Q76.3-Q76.4)
Klippel-Feil syndrome (Q76.1)
lumbarization and sacralization (Q76.4)
platyspondylisis (Q76.4)
spina bifida occulta (Q76.0)
spinal curvature in osteoporosis (M80.-)
spinal curvature in Paget's disease of bone [osteitis deformans] (M88.-)

Excludes2 — not included here — inherited from Chapter 13

The conditions below are not part of M43.3, but a patient may have both at the same time. When documentation supports it, M43.3 and the excluded code may both be reported.

arthropathic psoriasis (L40.5-)
certain conditions originating in the perinatal period (P04-P96)
certain infectious and parasitic diseases (A00-B99)
compartment syndrome (traumatic) (T79.A-)
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)

How long has M43.3 existed?

M43.3 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.