R20.9 - Unspecified disturbances of skin sensation

Version 2023
No Valid Principal Dx
ICD-10:R20.9
Short Description:Unspecified disturbances of skin sensation
Long Description:Unspecified disturbances of skin sensation
Status: Valid for Submission
Version:ICD-10-CM 2023
Code Classification:
  • Symptoms, signs and abnormal clinical and laboratory findings, not elsewhere classified (R00–R99)
    • Symptoms and signs involving the skin and subcutaneous tissue (R20-R23)
      • Disturbances of skin sensation (R20)

R20.9 is a billable ICD-10 code used to specify a medical diagnosis of unspecified disturbances of skin sensation. The code is valid during the fiscal year 2023 from October 01, 2022 through September 30, 2023 for the submission of HIPAA-covered transactions.

Unspecified diagnosis codes like R20.9 are acceptable when clinical information is unknown or not available about a particular condition. Although a more specific code is preferable, unspecified codes should be used when such codes most accurately reflect what is known about a patient's condition. Specific diagnosis codes should not be used if not supported by the patient's medical record.

According to ICD-10-CM guidelines this code should not to be used as a principal diagnosis code when a related definitive diagnosis has been established.

Approximate Synonyms

The following clinical terms are approximate synonyms or lay terms that might be used to identify the correct diagnosis code:

Index to Diseases and Injuries References

The Index to Diseases and Injuries is an alphabetical listing of medical terms, with each term mapped to one or more ICD-10 code(s). The following references for this diagnosis code are found in the injuries and diseases index:

Convert to ICD-9 Code

Source ICD-10 CodeTarget ICD-9 Code
R20.9782.0 - Skin sensation disturb
Approximate Flag - The approximate mapping means there is not an exact match between the ICD-10 and ICD-9 codes and the mapped code is not a precise representation of the original code.

Patient Education


Peripheral Nerve Disorders

Your peripheral nerves are the ones outside your brain and spinal cord. Like static on a telephone line, peripheral nerve disorders distort or interrupt the messages between the brain and the rest of the body.

There are more than 100 kinds of peripheral nerve disorders. They can affect one nerve or many nerves. Some are the result of other diseases, like diabetic nerve problems. Others, like Guillain-Barre syndrome, happen after a virus infection. Still others are from nerve compression, like carpal tunnel syndrome or thoracic outlet syndrome. In some cases, like complex regional pain syndrome and brachial plexus injuries, the problem begins after an injury. Some people are born with peripheral nerve disorders.

Symptoms often start gradually, and then get worse. They include :

Treatment aims to treat any underlying problem, reduce pain and control symptoms.

NIH: National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke


[Learn More in MedlinePlus]

Code History