ICD code S72.024A – Nondisplaced fracture of epiphysis (separation) (upper) of right femur

Key takeaways

In short, S72.024A is a billable ICD-10-CM code for a nondisplaced fracture of the upper epiphysis of the right femur, initial encounter for closed fracture.

Laterality and displacement are separate decisions, so the left-side match is S72.025A and the displaced right-side code is S72.021A.

Category S72 allows 16 different 7th characters. In fact, six of them describe closed fractures, and A covers the whole active treatment phase.

The upper epiphysis is not the femoral neck, so a note reading only right hip fracture cannot support S72.024A.

So, practice management software like Pabau submits and tracks claims through Claim.MD, using the codes already recorded in the patient chart.

ICD-10 Code S72.024A: Quick reference

The table below contains the core reference data for ICD-10 Code S72.024A. In fact, all values reflect the 2026 ICD-10-CM edition, effective October 1, 2025.

What does S72.024A mean? Full code description

S72.024A describes a nondisplaced fracture of the upper femoral epiphysis on the right side, coded at the initial encounter for a closed fracture. Indeed, each term in the description carries a distinct coding obligation.

• Nondisplaced: The bone fragments remain in anatomical alignment despite the fracture. This contrasts with a displaced fracture, where the fragment ends shift out of position. So coders cannot apply this qualifier without explicit physician documentation of displacement status.
• Epiphysis (separation) (upper): The fracture involves the growth plate region at the proximal end of the femur. In fact, the word separation signals a Salter-Harris type injury at the physeal plate rather than a mid-shaft or neck fracture.
• Right femur: Laterality is required for every S72 code. Right is encoded here. In contrast, the left-sided equivalent is S72.025A, and the unspecified-side code is S72.026A.
• Initial encounter (A): The 7th character A applies while the patient is receiving active treatment for the fracture. In fact, that covers the emergency department visit, surgery, and any later visit still inside the initial treatment phase.
• Closed fracture: The skin over the fracture site is intact. In contrast, an open fracture, where bone penetrates the skin, uses different 7th character extensions.

All five elements must appear in the physician’s documentation for the code to be assigned correctly. Instead, a note stating only right hip fracture, without displacement status or fracture location, cannot support S72.024A.

Anatomy: femoral epiphysis and upper femur

The upper femoral epiphysis is the rounded head of the femur that articulates with the acetabulum to form the hip joint. So, understanding its anatomical boundaries prevents the most common coding error for this code: confusing an epiphysis fracture with a femoral neck fracture.

Epiphyseal separations are most common in skeletally immature patients, where the physeal plate is still open. In contrast, adults fracture the same anatomical region differently. In fact, the ICD-10-CM term separation applies whenever the documentation uses it, regardless of patient age.

7th character suffix: encounter type codes for S72.024

S72.024 requires a 7th character to become billable. In fact, the character encodes the clinical phase of care and whether the fracture is open or closed. Category S72 carries 16 possible extensions, and picking the wrong one is a common reason for claim rejection.

Six of the 16 describe a closed fracture, so these are the characters that apply to a nondisplaced closed injury like S72.024A.

The remaining ten characters describe open fractures and follow the Gustilo classification. So, they split every treatment phase into type I or II injuries and type IIIA, IIIB, or IIIC injuries.

Character A applies for the full duration of active treatment, not just the first visit. For instance, a patient who returns for hardware removal or a cast change while still in active treatment keeps A, not D.

Displacement status: nondisplaced vs. displaced femur fractures in ICD-10

Displacement status splits the S72.02 epiphysis fractures into two separate code families, each with distinct billing effects. Indeed, nondisplaced fractures of the upper right femoral epiphysis often call for a different surgical approach than displaced ones. So, payers use that distinction to validate medical necessity for specific procedure codes.

When physician documentation does not specify displacement status, ICD-10-CM guidelines instruct coders to query the provider rather than default to displaced or nondisplaced. Instead, assigning S72.024A without documented nondisplaced status is a coding error that a payer audit can flag. In short, ICD-10-CM documentation standards require the treating physician to capture this detail at the time of diagnosis.

Related ICD-10 codes in the S72 category

S72.024A sits within a structured hierarchy of femur fracture codes. So, knowing the sibling and parent codes prevents misassignment when laterality, displacement, or fracture subtype changes. Also, the wider diagnostic codes library covers the other anatomy-based families a trauma coder works through.

Excludes notes also apply to the S72 category, and the two types behave differently. The category carries one Excludes1 note, for traumatic amputation of hip and thigh (S78.-), which is never coded alongside S72.024A. In fact, the Excludes2 list carries three codes. Those are periprosthetic fracture of a hip prosthesis (M97.0-), fracture of the lower leg and ankle (S82.-), and fracture of foot (S92.-). So, all three may be reported together with S72.024A when the patient has both injuries.

MS-DRG mapping for S72.024A

For inpatient admissions, S72.024A maps into CMS Medicare Severity Diagnosis Related Groups (MS-DRGs) that determine hospital reimbursement. In short, the specific DRG depends on what else is documented for the same admission. In fact, whether the record carries a major complication or comorbidity (MCC), a complication or comorbidity (CC), or neither decides the grouping.

These DRG assignments apply when S72.024A is paired with the relevant operative procedure codes. In short, a medical claims clearinghouse edit check is the last place to catch a grouping that does not match the documented comorbidities.

Documentation requirements for accurate coding

Accurate assignment of ICD-10 Code S72.024A depends on five specific elements in the treating physician’s note. So, missing any one of them creates a query that delays coding and may push billing past timely-filing limits. Instead, a documentation template that prompts for all five at the point of care removes most of those queries.

• Fracture location: The physician must name the specific anatomical structure. For instance, right hip fracture does not distinguish between the epiphysis, femoral neck, intertrochanteric, and subtrochanteric regions. Instead, the note must say epiphysis or femoral head epiphysis to support S72.024A over a neck or intertrochanteric code.
• Laterality: Right or left must be explicitly stated. Also, a bilateral injury requires a separate code for each side.
• Displacement status: Document whether the fragments are displaced or nondisplaced, based on imaging findings from X-ray, CT, or MRI.
• Fracture type (open vs. closed): Skin integrity determines which 7th character extensions are available. In fact, for an open fracture, the Gustilo classification decides between the type I/II and type III characters.
• Encounter type: The coder determines this from the clinical context, active treatment or follow-up. So, the note should still make the phase of care obvious.

In short, those five elements, read in sequence, resolve into four decisions, with fracture type and encounter type both settled by the 7th character.

So, applying the same five checks at every encounter type reduces query volume and supports cleaner first-pass claim rates.

Common coding errors and excludes notes for right femur fractures

Several coding mistakes appear again and again on claims involving ICD-10 Code S72.024A. In fact, each one below has a denial attached to it. So, spotting the pattern before the claim goes out costs far less than reworking it after the payer sends it back.

• Wrong laterality: Assigning S72.025A (left femur) instead of S72.024A (right femur) is a claim-level error. So, the operative report, the imaging, and the attending note must all agree on the side before coding.
• Missing 7th character: S72.024 without a 7th character is not billable. As a result, a claim submitted with the parent code and no extension rejects at the clearinghouse or at the payer.
• Confusing epiphysis with femoral neck: The neck codes sit in S72.00-, where S72.001A is the right side and S72.002A the left. So, assigning a neck code when documentation says epiphysis misrepresents the injury and can trigger a DRG-change audit.
• Applying character A beyond active treatment: Once the fracture is healing and the patient is in routine follow-up, character D applies. So, continuing to use A for stable post-operative visits is a sequencing error.
• Misreading the excludes notes: In fact, S72 carries a single Excludes1 note, traumatic amputation of hip and thigh (S78.-). Periprosthetic hip fracture (M97.0-), lower leg and ankle fracture (S82.-), and foot fracture (S92.-) are Excludes2, so they can be reported alongside S72.024A.
• Treating a pathological fracture as traumatic: A fracture caused by underlying disease rather than trauma belongs in the M80 or M84.4 pathological fracture categories. So, check the physician’s stated mechanism before reaching for an S72 code.

So, coding accuracy on trauma claims starts with consistent documentation at the point of care rather than corrections at the billing stage.

How Pabau supports accurate diagnostic code management

Billing an orthopedic fracture case takes a system that carries documentation through to claim submission without manual re-entry. In fact, practice management software like Pabau keeps the encounter note, the recorded codes, and the claim in one place. As a result, nobody retypes S72.024A into a separate billing tool.

Pabau’s claims management software submits and tracks claims through its Claim.MD integration, using the diagnosis and procedure codes already stored on the patient record. Instead, Pabau does not choose the diagnosis code for you, and it does not assign laterality or displacement status. So, those decisions stay with the clinician and the coder, exactly where the ICD-10-CM guidelines put them.

The re-keying and the chasing go away. As a result, claim status comes back into the same record the note lives in. So, your billing team can see which fracture claims are paid, pending, or rejected without opening a second system.

Streamline ICD-10 coding and claims in one platform

Pabau carries your clinical documentation and its recorded codes straight into claim submission and tracking, so fracture claims leave the practice without manual re-entry.

Book a demo

Conclusion

Accurate assignment of ICD-10 Code S72.024A turns on four documentation elements. In fact, those are the fracture location (epiphysis, not neck), the laterality (right), the displacement status (nondisplaced), and the matching 7th character. Miss one of them and the claim either rejects outright or invites a DRG-level audit.

The side is the easiest detail to get wrong, because S72.024A and S72.025A differ by a single digit. Read the operative report before you code, and confirm that the imaging and the attending note name the same femur.

Pabau keeps the clinical note, the recorded codes, and claim submission in one connected workflow. As a result, what your coder assigns for S72.024A is what reaches the payer. Book a demo to see how orthopedic teams move a fracture claim from the note to the payer without re-entry.

Continue your research

Need guidance on billing for orthopedic claims? In fact, Clean claim submission checklist covers the documentation and coding elements that prevent first-pass denials on orthopedic and trauma claims.

Looking to reduce claim denials on fracture codes? So, Medical billing compliance guide outlines the payer-level requirements that affect S72 and similar musculoskeletal code submissions.

Want to understand ICD-10 code updates each year? Indeed, Superbill creation and management explains how annual ICD-10-CM revisions affect the codes that populate your billing forms and encounter records.

Frequently asked questions