Displaced articular fracture of head of right femur, sequela

This code signifies a past injury involving a break in the head of the right femur that extended into the joint surface, where the bone fragments were not in their normal alignment. The "sequela" designation indicates that this code is used for conditions or complications arising directly from this previous fracture, even after the initial healing phase.

Apply this code when documenting long-term complications, chronic pain, nonunion, malunion, or other residual effects directly attributable to a previously displaced articular fracture of the right femoral head. This is appropriate for follow-up encounters occurring after the initial treatment and healing of the acute fracture.

• Always ensure documentation clearly links the current condition to the prior displaced articular fracture of the right femoral head.
• Do not use this code for the initial acute fracture; instead, use the appropriate acute fracture code.
• Consider additional codes for specific sequelae (e.g., M16.11 for post-traumatic osteoarthritis of the right hip) to fully capture the patient's condition.