Alphabetic Index FY2027

S44.20XA

Injury of radial nerve at upper arm level, unspecified arm, initial encounter

FY2027Chapter 19: Injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes/S40–S49 Injuries to the shoulder and upper arm

BillableComplete code, valid to report

S44.20XA (also written S4420XA) is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code for injury of radial nerve at upper arm level, unspecified arm, initial encounter. It is part of the FY2027 code set, effective October 1, 2026. It is one of the 72 codes in category S44 (Injury of nerves at shoulder and upper arm level). Its 7th character, A, means initial encounter. Its coding notes include a Use additional code instruction, a Code also instruction, 1 Excludes1 entry and 7 Excludes2 entries.

7th character

Category S44 requires a 7th character. S44.20 has only 5 characters, so a placeholder X fills the 6th position.

Assembled code S44.20XA Open code

Guidelines tips

From the FY2027 Official Guidelines. ICD10Ref adds no rules of its own.

The 7th character depends on whether the patient is in active treatment, not on who sees the patient. An aftercare Z code is not used for injury aftercare.

Guidelines I.C.19.aInjuries: application of 7th charactersRead the official text

Each injury gets its own code unless a combination code exists, with the most serious injury first. Superficial injuries at the same site as a more severe injury are not coded. Injuries during medical care are coded as complications.

Guidelines I.C.19.bCoding of injuriesRead the official text

Use additional code

Add the listed code as a secondary code, if known.

Also from chapter/block level (1 note)
Inherited from Chapter 19 Injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes
  • code to identify any retained foreign body, if applicable (Z18.-)

Code also

Two codes may be needed to describe the condition. This note gives no sequencing order.

Inherited from S44 Injury of nerves at shoulder and upper arm level
  • any associated open wound (S41.-)

Excludes1

Not coded here. The listed conditions generally should not be reported together.

Inherited from S44.2 Injury of radial nerve at upper arm level

Excludes2

Not included here. Both codes may be reported if the patient has both conditions.

Inherited from S44 Injury of nerves at shoulder and upper arm level
  • injury of brachial plexus (S14.3-)
Also from chapter/block level (6 notes)
Inherited from S40–S49 Injuries to the shoulder and upper arm
Inherited from Chapter 19 Injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes
  • birth trauma (P10-P15)
  • obstetric trauma (O70-O71)

Includes

Further defines or gives examples of the content of the category.

Also from chapter/block level (2 notes)
Inherited from S40–S49 Injuries to the shoulder and upper arm
  • injuries of axilla
  • injuries of scapular region

Notes

Also from chapter/block level (2 notes)
Inherited from Chapter 19 Injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes
  • Use secondary code(s) from Chapter 20, External causes of morbidity, to indicate cause of injury. Codes within the T section that include the external cause do not require an additional external cause code
  • The chapter uses the S-section for coding different types of injuries related to single body regions and the T-section to cover injuries to unspecified body regions as well as poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes.