Radiculopathy

M54.10 classifies radiculopathy — nerve root compression or irritation causing radiating pain, sensory changes, or motor deficits — when the affected spinal region is not documented or cannot be determined.

Radiculopathy arising from nerve root irritation or compression at the occipito-atlanto-axial region — the junction of the occiput, atlas (C1), and axis (C2) — producing pain, numbness, or weakness in the corresponding distribution.

M54.12 classifies radiculopathy arising from nerve root compression or irritation in the cervical (C1–C7) region of the spine, without an identified disc disorder or spondylosis as the primary cause.

Nerve root dysfunction at the junction where the cervical spine meets the thoracic spine (C7–T1), producing pain, sensory changes, or motor deficits that typically radiate into the upper extremity or chest wall.

M54.14 identifies radiculopathy localized to the thoracic spine — nerve root dysfunction in the mid-to-upper back producing pain, sensory changes, or motor deficits in a thoracic dermatomal distribution.

Radiculopathy localized to the thoracolumbar junction — the transitional zone where the lower thoracic spine meets the upper lumbar spine — producing nerve root irritation or compression with pain, sensory changes, or motor deficits radiating along the corresponding dermatomal distribution.

Nerve root compression or irritation arising specifically from the lumbar spinal segment, producing radicular pain, sensory deficits, or motor weakness that radiates along the affected dermatomal distribution.

M54.17 identifies nerve root dysfunction originating at the lumbosacral junction (L5–S1 level), producing radicular pain, sensory changes, or motor deficits that radiate into the lower extremity — distinct from nonspecific low back pain or sciatica as a symptom.

Nerve root dysfunction arising from the sacral or sacrococcygeal spinal segments, producing pain, sensory changes, or motor deficits in the distribution of sacral nerve roots (S1–S5) or the coccygeal nerve.