M54

Non-Billable
ChapterM00–M99
Rankcategory
Official Description

Dorsalgia

Metadata & Insights
  • •2026 ICD-10-CM Edition - Effective October 1, 2025.
  • •Non-billable category (requires more specific sub-code).
  • •Chapter 13: Diseases of the Musculoskeletal System and Connective Tissue (M00-M99).

CH13 Parent Instructions

Excludes2(Not included here)
  • 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)

M50-M54 Parent Instructions

Excludes1(Not coded here)
  • current injury - see injury of spine by body region
  • discitis NOS (M46.4-)

Instructional Notes

Excludes1(Not coded here)
  • psychogenic dorsalgia (F45.41)

Clinical Hierarchy

CH13Diseases of the musculoskeletal system and connective tissue (M00-M99)
M50-M54Other dorsopathies (M50-M54)
M54Dorsalgia
M54.0Panniculitis affecting regions of neck and back
M54.1Radiculopathy
M54.2Cervicalgia
M54.3Sciatica
M54.4Lumbago with sciatica
M54.5Low back pain
M54.6Pain in thoracic spine
M54.8Other dorsalgia
M54.9Dorsalgia, unspecified

Applicable Ancestor Context

The following parent sections contain instructions or notes that apply to M54:

blockM50-M54
Other dorsopathies (M50-M54)
View context instructions
chapterCH13
Diseases of the musculoskeletal system and connective tissue (M00-M99)
View context instructions

Alphabetic Index Mentions

These are Diagnosis Index lookup paths that route to M54. Use them as entry terms for search, then confirm final coding instructions in the Tabular List and notes above.

25 raw paths
Backache (postural)2 unique routes
Direct index entry→M54
specified NEC→M54
Cervicalgia1 unique routes
Direct index entry→M54
Dorsalgia2 unique routes
Direct index entry→M54
specified NEC→M54
Low1 unique routes
back syndrome→M54
Lumbago, lumbalgia2 unique routes
Direct index entry→M54
with sciatica→M54
Neuralgia, neuralgic (acute)1 unique routes
occipital→M54
Neuritis (rheumatoid)3 unique routes
lumbar→M54
lumbosacral→M54
thoracic→M54
Pain (s)13 unique routes
back (postural)→M54
loin→M54
low back→M54(4 variants)
specified NEC→M54
vertebral end plate→M54
vertebrogenic→M54
lumbar region→M54(3 variants)
vertebral end plate→M54
vertebrogenic→M54
neck NEC→M54
spine→M54(3 variants)
cervical→M54
low back→M54

MS-DRG Classification

2026

No direct MS-DRG triggers identified.

Cross Reference

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