Neck Pain (Cervicalgia) ICD-10-CM codes

M54.2 (cervicalgia) is the code for neck pain that has no documented cause. It has no laterality or acuity axis. Its Excludes1 note removes neck pain due to a cervical disc disorder, which is coded to M50.- instead: M50.20 for cervical disc displacement, M50.30 for cervical disc degeneration, or M50.90 when the disc disorder is unspecified. Once a disc problem is documented as the source of the pain, M54.2 is dropped.

Neck pain radiating into the arm with documented nerve root involvement is cervical radiculopathy, M54.12 (cervical region) or M54.13 (cervicothoracic region), unless a disc herniation is the stated cause, in which case M50.1- is the combination code and M54.1- is not added. Cervicobrachial syndrome is M53.1 and cervicocranial syndrome is M53.0. Degenerative neck pain from cervical spondylosis without nerve involvement is M47.812. Occipital neuralgia is M54.81.

Acute torticollis (wry neck) is M43.6, not M54.2. Neck pain after a motor vehicle collision documented as whiplash or cervical sprain is an injury code, S13.4XXA for the initial encounter, with an external cause code; the symptom code is not reported in addition. For chronic neck pain, add G89.29 and follow the chapter 6 sequencing rule based on the reason for the visit.