T33-T34 — Frostbite
ICD-10-CM codes T33-T34 cover frostbite, within injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes. The block holds 326 codes across 2 categories, of which 222 are billable and 104 are header codes that cannot be submitted on a claim. 326 of them (100%) require a 7th character.
The 7th character in T33-T34
A code in this block is not complete without its 7th character, and a missing one is a rejected claim rather than a denied one: the clearinghouse never passes it on. 326 of the 326 codes here take one.
- A
- initial encounter
- D
- subsequent encounter
- S
- sequela
What else to watch in T33-T34
- 160 codes are laterality-specific. They come in left and right pairs, and the pair is mutually exclusive on a single site: coding both without a bilateral code is a contradiction a scrubber should catch before the payer does.
- 12 codes are named in Medicare coverage policies. An LCD or NCD lists them as supporting medical necessity, or explicitly as not supporting it. Which applies depends on the MAC for your state.