ICD-10-CM Code For Acute Sinusitis: Group Overview

The International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-10-CM) code group J01 includes acute sinusitis diagnoses such as acute maxillary, frontal, ethmoidal, sphenoidal, and pansinusitis, covering short-term inflammation of the paranasal sinuses often related to upper respiratory infections. These ICD-10-CM diagnosis codes are used to document clinical encounters for patients with acute sinus inflammation, capturing anatomic site, laterality when specified, and associated clinical complexity. Accurate coding within the ICD-10-CM J01 group supports proper claim adjudication, complete clinical documentation, and appropriate reimbursement.

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ICD-10-CM J01: Acute Sinusitis Overview

The International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-10-CM) code group J01 represents acute inflammation of the paranasal sinuses, commonly resulting from viral or bacterial upper respiratory infections and affecting the nasal and sinus mucosa. These diagnoses target the respiratory system, specifically the sinuses, and include site-specific acute maxillary, frontal, ethmoidal, and sphenoidal sinusitis as well as acute pansinusitis. Accurate coding matters for appropriate reimbursement because it documents the specific anatomic site and severity, which affects claim adjudication and clinical record completeness.

When to Use

Use a code from this group for clinical encounters documenting acute onset sinus symptoms with confirmed or suspected inflammation of one or more paranasal sinuses. Select the specific site and laterality when documented to reflect the correct ICD-10-CM J01 code.

ICD-10-CM Codes

14 rows

ICD-10-CM Code	Description
J01.00	Acute maxillary sinusitis, unspecified
J01.01	Acute recurrent maxillary sinusitis
J01.10	Acute frontal sinusitis, unspecified
J01.11	Acute recurrent frontal sinusitis
J01.20	Acute ethmoidal sinusitis, unspecified
J01.21	Acute recurrent ethmoidal sinusitis
J01.30	Acute sphenoidal sinusitis, unspecified
J01.31	Acute recurrent sphenoidal sinusitis
J01.40	Acute pansinusitis, unspecified
J01.41	Acute recurrent pansinusitis
J01.80	Other acute sinusitis
J01.81	Other acute recurrent sinusitis
J01.90	Acute sinusitis, unspecified
J01.91	Acute recurrent sinusitis, unspecified

DRG Codes

2 rows

DRG Code	Description
152	Otitis Media and URI with MCC
153	Otitis Media and URI without MCC

Typical Clinical Scenarios

An adult presents to urgent care with a 3-day history of sudden onset nasal congestion, purulent nasal discharge, facial pressure localized to the maxillary region, fever of 101°F, and tooth pain after a recent upper respiratory viral illness. Physical exam shows tenderness over the maxillary sinuses and opaque discharge on anterior nasal inspection; the clinician documents an acute bacterial maxillary sinusitis and prescribes antibiotics, assigning a code from this group for acute maxillary sinusitis. Typical codes: J01.10, J01.11
A pediatric patient arrives at the emergency department with high fever, severe headache, and periorbital swelling developing rapidly over 48 hours; CT imaging demonstrates opacification of the ethmoid sinuses consistent with acute ethmoid sinusitis with orbital cellulitis as a complication. Because the primary diagnosis is an acute ethmoid sinus infection requiring acute care and coordination with ENT, an acute ethmoid sinusitis code is recorded from this group. Typical codes: J01.00, J01.01
An adult with known allergic rhinitis develops abrupt onset frontal headache, nasal obstruction, and purulent anterior and posterior nasal drainage lasting one week despite symptomatic therapy; the primary care clinician documents acute frontal sinusitis on top of chronic sinonasal disease and provides a short course of antibiotics and follow-up. The visit is coded using an acute frontal sinusitis code from this set to capture the current acute infectious episode superimposed on underlying chronic conditions. Typical codes: J01.30, J01.31

Related Codes

J00-ACUTE-NASOPHARYNGITIS-COMMON-COLD

ICD-10-CM Code For Acute Nasopharyngitis Common Cold: Group Overview

J02-ACUTE-PHARYNGITIS

ICD-10-CM Code For Acute Pharyngitis: Group Overview

J03-ACUTE-TONSILLITIS

ICD-10-CM Code For Acute Tonsillitis: Group Overview

J04-ACUTE-LARYNGITIS-AND-TRACHEITIS

ICD-10-CM Code For Acute Laryngitis And Tracheitis: Group Overview

J05-ACUTE-OBSTRUCTIVE-LARYNGITIS-AND-EPIGLOTTITIS

ICD-10-CM Code For Acute Obstructive Laryngitis And Epiglottitis: Group Overview

J06-ACUTE-UPPER-RESPIRATORY-INFECTIONS

ICD-10-CM Code For Acute Upper Respiratory Infections Of Multiple And Unspecified Sites: Group Overview

Frequently Asked Questions

References

1.CPT® Codes and Descriptions. AAPC. Retrieved Aug 11, 2026.Maintains the CPT code set's official descriptions and guidelines, licensed from the American Medical Association, used as the definitional source for CPT codes on this page.
2.HCPCS Quarterly Update. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Retrieved Aug 11, 2026.CMS's quarterly release of HCPCS Level II codes and short/long descriptors, the source for HCPCS code definitions and update history.
3.ICD-10-CM Full Code List. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Retrieved Aug 11, 2026.CMS's complete ICD-10-CM diagnosis code list, used to cross-reference diagnosis codes associated with this procedure or service.

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When to Use

ICD-10-CM Codes

14 rows

ICD-10-CM Code	Description
J01.00	Acute maxillary sinusitis, unspecified
J01.01	Acute recurrent maxillary sinusitis
J01.10	Acute frontal sinusitis, unspecified
J01.11	Acute recurrent frontal sinusitis
J01.20	Acute ethmoidal sinusitis, unspecified
J01.21	Acute recurrent ethmoidal sinusitis
J01.30	Acute sphenoidal sinusitis, unspecified
J01.31	Acute recurrent sphenoidal sinusitis
J01.40	Acute pansinusitis, unspecified
J01.41	Acute recurrent pansinusitis
J01.80	Other acute sinusitis
J01.81	Other acute recurrent sinusitis
J01.90	Acute sinusitis, unspecified
J01.91	Acute recurrent sinusitis, unspecified

DRG Codes

2 rows

DRG Code	Description
152	Otitis Media and URI with MCC
153	Otitis Media and URI without MCC

Typical Clinical Scenarios

An adult presents to urgent care with a 3-day history of sudden onset nasal congestion, purulent nasal discharge, facial pressure localized to the maxillary region, fever of 101°F, and tooth pain after a recent upper respiratory viral illness. Physical exam shows tenderness over the maxillary sinuses and opaque discharge on anterior nasal inspection; the clinician documents an acute bacterial maxillary sinusitis and prescribes antibiotics, assigning a code from this group for acute maxillary sinusitis. Typical codes: J01.10, J01.11
A pediatric patient arrives at the emergency department with high fever, severe headache, and periorbital swelling developing rapidly over 48 hours; CT imaging demonstrates opacification of the ethmoid sinuses consistent with acute ethmoid sinusitis with orbital cellulitis as a complication. Because the primary diagnosis is an acute ethmoid sinus infection requiring acute care and coordination with ENT, an acute ethmoid sinusitis code is recorded from this group. Typical codes: J01.00, J01.01
An adult with known allergic rhinitis develops abrupt onset frontal headache, nasal obstruction, and purulent anterior and posterior nasal drainage lasting one week despite symptomatic therapy; the primary care clinician documents acute frontal sinusitis on top of chronic sinonasal disease and provides a short course of antibiotics and follow-up. The visit is coded using an acute frontal sinusitis code from this set to capture the current acute infectious episode superimposed on underlying chronic conditions. Typical codes: J01.30, J01.31

Related Codes

J00-ACUTE-NASOPHARYNGITIS-COMMON-COLD

ICD-10-CM Code For Acute Nasopharyngitis Common Cold: Group Overview

J02-ACUTE-PHARYNGITIS

ICD-10-CM Code For Acute Pharyngitis: Group Overview

J03-ACUTE-TONSILLITIS

ICD-10-CM Code For Acute Tonsillitis: Group Overview

J04-ACUTE-LARYNGITIS-AND-TRACHEITIS

ICD-10-CM Code For Acute Laryngitis And Tracheitis: Group Overview

J05-ACUTE-OBSTRUCTIVE-LARYNGITIS-AND-EPIGLOTTITIS

ICD-10-CM Code For Acute Obstructive Laryngitis And Epiglottitis: Group Overview

J06-ACUTE-UPPER-RESPIRATORY-INFECTIONS

ICD-10-CM Code For Acute Upper Respiratory Infections Of Multiple And Unspecified Sites: Group Overview

Frequently Asked Questions

References

1.CPT® Codes and Descriptions. AAPC. Retrieved Aug 11, 2026.Maintains the CPT code set's official descriptions and guidelines, licensed from the American Medical Association, used as the definitional source for CPT codes on this page.
2.HCPCS Quarterly Update. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Retrieved Aug 11, 2026.CMS's quarterly release of HCPCS Level II codes and short/long descriptors, the source for HCPCS code definitions and update history.
3.ICD-10-CM Full Code List. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Retrieved Aug 11, 2026.CMS's complete ICD-10-CM diagnosis code list, used to cross-reference diagnosis codes associated with this procedure or service.

Published by

Trek Health powers OpenPayer with a leading commercial payer intelligence platform, seamlessly converting fragmented payer data into actionable insights for provider organizations.

ICD-10-CM Code For Acute Sinusitis: Group Overview

Sign up for ICD-10-CM Code For Acute Sinusitis: Group Overview policy alerts

ICD-10-CM J01: Acute Sinusitis Overview

ICD-10-CM Code For Acute Sinusitis: Group Overview

Sign up for ICD-10-CM Code For Acute Sinusitis: Group Overview policy alerts

ICD-10-CM J01: Acute Sinusitis Overview

When to Use

ICD-10-CM Codes

DRG Codes

Typical Clinical Scenarios

Related Codes

Which diagnoses are included in the ICD-10-CM J01 group for acute sinusitis?

How does the J01 group capture anatomic site and laterality?

What is the distinction between unspecified and recurrent codes in this group?

Which related DRGs are associated with acute sinusitis in this content?

Why is accurate coding within the J01 group important for billing and clinical documentation?

References

When to Use

ICD-10-CM Codes

DRG Codes

Typical Clinical Scenarios

Related Codes

Which diagnoses are included in the ICD-10-CM J01 group for acute sinusitis?

How does the J01 group capture anatomic site and laterality?

What is the distinction between unspecified and recurrent codes in this group?

Which related DRGs are associated with acute sinusitis in this content?

Why is accurate coding within the J01 group important for billing and clinical documentation?

References