Va Rating For Osteoarthritis Knee

Osteoarthritis is not a systemic disease.

Va rating for osteoarthritis knee. Slight 10 moderate 20 or severe 30 under Diagnostic Code 5257. These 40 and 60 ratings related only to the point of amputation. VA assigns a 0 10 20 or 30 percent disability rating for this knee pain condition based on the amount of instability present in the knee. Osteoarthritis Osteomyelitis Traumatic damage to joints.

Osteoarthritis OA is the most common form of arthritis and is defined by Mayo Clinic as a degenerative condition in which the protective cartilage that cushions the ends of your bones wears down. A knee instability VA rating can be related to arthritis but doesnt have to be. Have your doctor specifically use this language when heshe explains your limitations due to knee arthritis. It doesnt affect the entire body.

Slight 10 moderate 20 or severe 30. Under the VA rating schedule there is a standard 20 disability rating if there is x-ray evidence of involvement of two or more major joints or minor joint groups with occasional incapacitating exacerbations. The VA official site states that 20 and 10 ratings mentioned above cannot be combined with ratings based on limitation of motion. Ankylosis of the Knee Diagnostic Code 5256.

Degenerative arthritis will be rated at 10 or 20 percent based upon the number of jointsjoint groups affected and the level of incapacitation. In order to get the highest evaluation the knee must be so unstable that it gives out or dislocates on a regular basis. The VA rating for knee amputations is either 40 if there still some knee function or 60 if the knee is removed or unusable. Osteoarthritis is also known as hypertrophic arthritis or degenerative arthritis.

VA joint pain ratings are funny because you have to treat every disabled joint like a different disability rating. Veterans suffering from osteoarthritis may be eligible for disability benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs VA. The VA awards disability compensation for each Knee and Lower Leg condition that is service-connectedThe DoD will also rate service-connected conditions as long as they also make the service member Unfit fo r Duty. Knee instability or crepitation creeking and clicking sounds coming from your joints can help you get a higher rating too.

So the less the knee can bend the higher the rating will be. Its effects are confined to the involved joints. Its important that your doctor use these three terms to explain your limitations due to arthritis. According to the rating criteria if the knee can straighten but cant bend all the way it is rated under 5260.

Major joints include the shoulder wrist elbow hip knee and ankle while minor joints include toes fingers spine and sacroiliac. The VA policy in this area includes a prohibition on combining ratings. These will be combined not added to determine the rating for arthritis. In all joints osteoarthritis is the most common arthritis.

The VA has 3 ways to categorize this aspect when rating arthritis of the knee. Various toes and parts of the foot can earn you different VA ratings. Additionally he should explain why your condition falls into that particular category. You can be rated up to 30 for certain knee conditions without having to meet the ROM criteria.

These ratings are assigned based on how much the knee can bend. Important Information On Combined Ratings For The Degenerative Arthritis Condition. If you suffer from Phantom Limb Pain PLP you may try to get a higher rating. When however the limitation of motion of the specific joint or joints involved is noncompensable under the appropriate diagnostic codes a rating of 10 pct is for application for each such major joint or group of minor joints affected by limitation of motion to be combined not added under diagnostic code 5003.

VA requires that limitation of motion be confirmed by observations such as swelling muscle spasms or evidence of painful motion. The different percentages available are 0 10 20 and 30. If you can show evidence of any kind of strenuous work put on your knee you can get closer to service-connected arthritis. The VA rating specialist will categorize instability of the joint in three ways.