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what does sequela mean

Author

Sophia Vance

Updated on May 14, 2026

Definition of sequela

1 : an aftereffect of a disease, condition, or injury.

What is an example of sequela?

Some conditions may be diagnosed retrospectively from their sequelae. An example is pleurisy. Other examples of sequelae include those following neurological injury; including aphasia, ataxia, hemi- and quadriplegia, and any number of other changes that may be caused by neurological trauma.

What is sequela treatment?

A chronic condition or injury resulting from treatment for a disease.

What is a sequela diagnosis?

Example 3: A sequela character (“S”) is applied for complications or conditions that arise as a direct result of a condition or injury (in ICD-9, these were known as “late effects”). Examples may include joint contracture after a tendon injury, hemiplegia after a stroke or scar formation following a burn.

What is the difference between complication and sequelae?

However, it is important to note that with a sequela, the acute phase of an illness or injury has resolved or healed, and the sequela is left. Conversely, a complication is a condition that occurs as a result of treatment, or a condition that interrupts the healing process from an acute illness or injury.

What is allergy sequela?

40XS for Allergy, unspecified, sequela is a medical classification as listed by WHO under the range – Injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes .

What is a sequelae of cerebral infarction?

Sequelae are residual effects or conditions produced after the acute phase of an illness or injury has ended. Therefore there is no time limit on when a sequela code can be assigned. Residuals may be apparent early on such as in cerebral infarction, or they can occur months or years later..

What does sequela of prior trauma mean?

Sequela: A pathological condition resulting from a prior disease, injury, or attack. As for example, a sequela of polio. Verbatim from the Latin “sequela” (meaning sequel). Plural: sequelae.

What is the synonym of devastating?

(or cataclysmic), destructive, devastative, disastrous, ruinous.

Is sequelae singular or plural?

Answer. The plural form of sequela is sequelae.

How do you use sequelae in a sentence?

How to use sequela in a sentence
As with many diseases, after the acute infection has passed, a constellation of symptoms known as sequelae can still linger. This curvature, unlike the lateral curvature, is a sequela of an actual disease of the bones.

Can sequela be a primary diagnosis?

According to the ICD-10-CM Manual guidelines, a sequela (7th character “S”) code cannot be listed as the primary, first listed, or principal diagnosis on a claim, nor can it be the only diagnosis on a claim.

Is pain a sequela?

Defining Sequela

Perhaps the most common sequela is pain. Many patients receive treatment long after an injury has healed as a result of pain.

What does closed fracture mean?

Closed fracture (also called simple fracture).

The bone is broken, but the skin is intact.

What is considered active treatment of a fracture?

Initial visit examples: The provider follows up with a patient for an ankle fracture that is not healing, and makes the decision to surgically repair the fracture. This decision is considered active care, and is an initial encounter.