Symptoms and signs involving the skin and subcutaneous tissue (R20-R23)
The ICD-10 codes in the range R20-R23 are used to document various symptoms and signs related to the skin and subcutaneous tissue, including abnormal sensations, rashes, swellings, and other skin changes.
This range covers detailed sensory disturbances such as R20 codes for anesthesia, hypoesthesia, and paresthesia of the skin, helping medical coders identify specific types of numbness or abnormal sensations like tingling or excessive sensitivity (also called hyperesthesia). For example, terms like "numbness of skin" or "pins and needles" relate to R20.0-R20.3. The R21 code addresses nonspecific skin rashes, including eruptive patterns associated with infections or allergic reactions, aiding in capturing diverse rash presentations. Codes R22 encompass localized swellings, masses, or lumps anywhere on the body such as the head, neck, limbs, or trunk, with subcodes pinpointing the precise location of these findings, like "mass of skin of head" or "localized swelling of right upper limb." Lastly, the R23 codes refer to other skin changes including color alterations like cyanosis (bluish skin), pallor, flushing, spontaneous bruising, and texture changes such as thickening or peeling, which are essential to document conditions involving abnormal skin appearance and integrity.
These codes support accurate clinical documentation by linking common symptoms such as numbness, tingling, rash, swelling, or discoloration to specific ICD-10 codes, helping healthcare professionals and coders precisely characterize skin-related clinical findings for diagnosis, treatment tracking, and reporting purposes.
Symptoms, signs and abnormal clinical and laboratory findings, not elsewhere classified (R00–R99)
Symptoms and signs involving the skin and subcutaneous tissue (R20-R23)
- R21 Rash and other nonspecific skin eruption
Rash and other nonspecific skin eruption (R21)
R22 Localized swelling, mass and lump of skin and subcutaneous tissue
- R22.0 Localized swelling, mass and lump, head
- R22.1 Localized swelling, mass and lump, neck
- R22.2 Localized swelling, mass and lump, trunk
R22.3 Localized swelling, mass and lump, upper limb
- R22.30 Localized swelling, mass and lump, unspecified upper limb
- R22.31 Localized swelling, mass and lump, right upper limb
- R22.32 Localized swelling, mass and lump, left upper limb
- R22.33 Localized swelling, mass and lump, upper limb, bilateral
R22.4 Localized swelling, mass and lump, lower limb
- R22.40 Localized swelling, mass and lump, unspecified lower limb
- R22.41 Localized swelling, mass and lump, right lower limb
- R22.42 Localized swelling, mass and lump, left lower limb
- R22.43 Localized swelling, mass and lump, lower limb, bilateral
- R22.9 Localized swelling, mass and lump, unspecified
Localized swelling, mass and lump of skin and subcutaneous tissue (R22)
Instructional Notations
Type 2 Excludes
A type 2 excludes note represents "Not included here". An excludes2 note indicates that the condition excluded is not part of the condition represented by the code, but a patient may have both conditions at the same time. When an Excludes2 note appears under a code, it is acceptable to use both the code and the excluded code together, when appropriate.
