Crushing injury of unspecified forearm, sequela

This code signifies a crushing injury to an unspecified forearm that has resulted in a long-term consequence or complication. This means the initial injury has healed, but the patient is now experiencing a residual effect directly attributable to the original trauma. The specific forearm (left or right) is not documented or known.

Apply this code when a patient presents with a sequela (e.g., chronic pain, limited range of motion, nerve damage, nonunion, malunion, or deformity) stemming from a past crushing injury to their forearm. This code is appropriate for follow-up encounters after the initial acute injury has been treated and the patient is no longer in the active healing phase.

• Always assign a sequela code for conditions that are the late effects of an injury.
• Ensure documentation clearly links the current condition to a previous crushing injury of the forearm.
• If the specific forearm (left or right) is documented, a more specific code from the S57.8- category should be used instead.