Radiculopathy VA rating
The VA rates radiculopathy under DC 8520 (leg) / 8510 (arm), and most ratings land in the 10–80% per extremity range. What decides yours is the criteria below and what your record actually documents.
What the criteria ask for at each level
DC 8520 (sciatic) / 8510–8515 (upper) — 38 CFR §4.124a
| Rating | What the record has to show |
|---|---|
| 10% | Mild incomplete paralysis (subjective numbness/tingling). |
| 20% | Moderate incomplete paralysis (objective findings: reduced reflexes, sensory loss). |
| 40–60% | Moderately severe to severe incomplete paralysis (muscle atrophy, marked weakness). |
| 80% (sciatic) | Complete paralysis: foot dangles and drops, no active movement below the knee. |
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:
- incomplete paralysis — mild / moderate / severe
- muscle atrophy
- foot drop
- diminished reflexes
Evidence that moves this rating
- EMG/nerve conduction study
- Doctor notes documenting reflexes, sensation, and any atrophy
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.
- Describe each affected limb SEPARATELY — file each extremity as its own claim (paired limbs earn the bilateral factor).
- Describe objective signs: dropping things, tripping, visible muscle loss, burning/electric pain.
Our Statement Builderwalks through the questions that produce that kind of statement, in the schedule's own terms.
What radiculopathy can lead to1 documented pathway
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 burning, shock-like nerve pain directly degrades mental health. |
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.