Laceration with foreign body of unspecified forearm, sequela

This code describes a laceration of an unspecified forearm that has healed, but a foreign body introduced during the initial injury remains embedded. The "sequela" designation indicates that this code is used for the long-term effects or complications of the original injury, not the acute event itself. The presence of the foreign body is the ongoing issue.

This code is appropriate when a patient presents with a chronic issue related to a foreign body embedded in their forearm, stemming from a past laceration. This could include ongoing pain, inflammation, infection, or functional impairment directly attributable to the retained foreign object. It is used when the initial laceration has already healed.

• Always assign an additional code to specify the type of foreign body, if known (e.g., Z18.10 for retained glass fragment).
• Do not use this code for the initial acute laceration with foreign body; use the appropriate acute injury code.
• Ensure documentation clearly states the foreign body is a sequela of a laceration and not another type of injury.