K56

Header — not billable

Paralytic ileus and intestinal obstruction without hernia

The ICD-10 code for paralytic ileus and intestinal obstruction without hernia is K56.

K56 is a non-billable header code. It groups related conditions but cannot be used on its own for reimbursement — select one of the 8 more specific codes below.

Clinical notes

Excludes1 (not coded here)

An Excludes1 note is a pure exclusion: the excluded condition and this code should never be reported together, because the two conditions cannot occur at the same time (e.g. a congenital form vs. an acquired form of the same disease).

congenital stricture or stenosis of intestine (Q41-Q42)
cystic fibrosis with meconium ileus (E84.11)
ischemic stricture of intestine (K55.1)
meconium ileus NOS (P76.0)
neonatal intestinal obstructions classifiable to P76.-
obstruction of duodenum (K31.5)
postprocedural intestinal obstruction (K91.3-)

Excludes2 (not included here)

An Excludes2 note means the excluded condition is not part of this one, but a patient can have both at the same time — in that case both codes may be reported together.

stenosis of anus or rectum (K62.4)

Documentation support

General coding-documentation guidance — not a substitute for payer-specific requirements or professional coding judgment.

•This is a non-billable header code. Documentation must support a more specific child code before this diagnosis can be reported on a claim.
•Confirm the excluded condition(s) listed above are not also present — Excludes1 conditions cannot be coded together with this one.
•As a general rule, code to the highest level of specificity supported by the documentation in the medical record.

K56

Clinical notes

Excludes1 (not coded here)

Excludes2 (not included here)

Documentation support

Child codes under K56

Related codes in this category