IBS VA rating
The VA rates ibs under DC 7319, and most ratings land in the 10–30% range. What decides yours is the criteria below and what your record actually documents.
This code covers Irritable bowel syndrome - IBS.
What the criteria ask for at each level
DC 7319 - 38 CFR §4.114
| Rating | What the record has to show |
|---|---|
| 10% | Abdominal pain related to defecation at least once in the previous three months, AND two or more of: change in stool frequency, change in stool form, altered stool passage (straining or urgency), mucorrhea, abdominal bloating, or subjective distension. |
| 20% | Abdominal pain related to defecation at least three days a month over the previous three months, with the same two-or-more accompanying symptoms. |
| 30% | Abdominal pain related to defecation at least one day a WEEK over the previous three months, with the same two-or-more accompanying symptoms. This is the maximum under this code. |
The schedule's own words
Ratings turn on specific terms, and a record that describes the same reality in different language often reads as a lower rating. These are the words this code measures:
- abdominal pain RELATED TO DEFECATION - the pain has to be tied to bowel movements, not general stomach pain, and the record has to say so
- the six accompanying symptoms: change in stool frequency, change in stool form, altered stool passage (straining or urgency), mucorrhea, abdominal bloating, subjective distension - you need TWO of them at every level
- the previous three months - this code is measured over a defined window, so a dated log is worth more here than almost anywhere else
Evidence that moves this rating
- A symptom log covering several weeks (episodes, severity, work/life impact)
- GI treatment records
What your statement has to cover
Doctors chart symptoms; they rarely chart consequences. That part is yours, and it is usually what separates a documented rating from a reported one.
- Frequency is the entire ladder: once in three months is 10%, three days a month is 20%, one day a week is 30%. A dated log over three months is the single most valuable document in this claim.
- Describe frequency and unpredictability: bathroom urgency, planning life around bathroom access.
- Gulf War veterans: IBS is PRESUMPTIVE - no nexus letter needed.
Our Statement Builderwalks through the questions that produce that kind of statement, in the schedule's own terms.
What ibs can lead to 3 documented pathways
A secondary claim runs through a condition the VA already accepts, so the argument about your service is already won. What is left is the medical link - and a nexus opinion has to name the mechanism, not just the pair.
| Can lead to | The mechanism a nexus has to state |
|---|---|
| Depression | Chronic abdominal pain and gut-brain axis disruption cause depression. |
| GERD (acid reflux) | Chronic gut dysmotility and abdominal pressure changes aggravate acid reflux. |
| Hemorrhoids | Chronic bowel disturbance and straining directly cause and aggravate hemorrhoids. |
A pathway existing in the literature is not the same as your claim being granted - your records and the VA decide that. How secondary claims work covers the argument.
Before you spend money on this claim
VA ratings do not add. Each new rating applies only to the part of you the VA still counts as unimpaired, then rounds to the nearest ten - so from 70%, a new 10% condition leaves you at exactly 70% and changes your payment by nothing.
That does not make the claim worthless; it can still matter for TDIU, for SMC, or later when something else is added. But it is worth knowing before you pay for a nexus letter rather than after. Check what one more condition does at your rating - it takes a minute.