S55.101 Unspecified injury of radial artery at forearm level, right arm

ICD-10-CM Code S55.101: Unspecified injury of radial artery at forearm level, right arm

ICD-10-CM code S55.101 designates an unspecified injury of the radial artery at the forearm level of the right arm. The radial artery originates at the bifurcation of the axillary artery and supplies the anterior forearm compartment. This code is listed in official coding manuals alongside other specified and unspecified vascular injuries of the forearm, but the sources do not establish specific coverage or treatment guidelines. 1 3 4

Plain-language overview

The radial artery originates as a bifurcation of the axillary artery in the cubital fossa and runs along the lateral aspect of the forearm between the brachioradialis and flexor carpi radialis muscles. 1

What this code represents

Code S55.101 corresponds to the diagnosis of an unspecified injury of the radial artery at the forearm level of the right arm. 4

The CMS ICD-10-CM manual lists S55.101 as an unspecified injury of the radial artery at the forearm level of the right arm for an initial encounter. 3

Coding details

The CMS ICD-10-CM manual lists S55.101 among other forearm vascular injury codes, including laceration of the radial artery at the forearm level of the right arm and unspecified injury of the radial artery at the forearm level of the left arm. 3

Documentation considerations

The EVS Explore source provides the exact ICD-10-CM code S55.101 and the official display label of unspecified injury of radial artery at forearm level, right arm. 4

What the sources add

The NCBI anatomy source describes the radial artery supplying the anterior forearm compartment, while the CMS coding manual identifies S55.101 as an initial encounter for an unspecified right forearm radial artery injury. 1 3

The CMS manual lists S55.101 alongside other specified and unspecified blood vessel injuries at the forearm level of the right arm, including other specified injuries and lacerations of the radial artery. 3

Coverage and utilization context

A CMS billing and coding article for non-invasive arterial duplex ultrasound of the upper and lower extremities references other specified injury of radial artery at forearm level codes. 5

Sources

1. Bookshelf — ncbi.nlm.nih.gov; accessed 2026-07-26.
2. Bookshelf — ncbi.nlm.nih.gov; accessed 2026-07-26.
3. ICD-10-CM/PCS MS-DRG v37.0 Definitions Manual — cms.gov; accessed 2026-07-26.
4. EVS Explore — evsexplore.semantics.cancer.gov; accessed 2026-07-26.
5. Article - Billing and Coding: Non-Invasive Arterial Duplex Ultrasound of the Upper and Lower Extremities (A60318) — cms.gov; accessed 2026-07-26.