As a veteran, you could be entitled to VA disability benefits if you have developed a neurological disorder as a result of your military service. Neurological disorders can be debilitating and can impact your quality of life. Here’s how the VA rates neurological disorders and how to file a claim for VA disability for neurological disorders.
For many veterans, the return to civilian life is accompanied by the chronic, often invisible, burden of nerve damage. The persistent pain, weakness, and numbness are more than just physical symptoms; they are daily reminders of a service-related injury or condition that can impact everything from your ability to work to your quality of life. The VA provides disability benefits for these conditions, but the path to securing them is complex and highly specific.
Navigating the VA claims process can feel like a battle in itself. This comprehensive guide aims to demystify the system, providing you with a deeper understanding of how the VA evaluates nerve damage and highlighting the critical factors that can ensure you receive the full compensation you have rightfully earned.
Understanding the Roots and Realities of Service-Connected Nerve Damage
A successful VA claim begins with a clear understanding of your condition and its link to your military service. The VA needs to see a direct connection, or “nexus,” between your time in service and your current diagnosis.
Common Causes in Veterans
Most service-connected nerve damage claims can be traced back to two primary origins:
- Direct Physical Trauma: The rigors of military service create numerous situations where nerves can be damaged. This includes obvious causes like shrapnel wounds, bullet wounds, or crush injuries from accidents. However, it also includes less apparent trauma, such as nerve compression from carrying heavy gear for long periods, injuries sustained during training exercises, or even complications and errors from surgeries performed to treat other service-related injuries.
- As a Secondary Condition: Often, nerve damage (specifically peripheral neuropathy) develops as a result of another service-connected disability. The most common example is diabetes mellitus type 2, which is a presumptive condition for veterans exposed to Agent Orange and can lead to severe neuropathy in the hands and feet. Other primary conditions that can cause secondary nerve damage include spinal injuries, where a herniated disc can impinge on the sciatic nerve (radiculopathy), or scar tissue from a surgical procedure that entraps a nerve.
The Daily Impact of Symptoms
It’s crucial to articulate how your symptoms affect your daily life. The VA is not just rating the diagnosis; it is rating the functional impairment it causes.
- Pain, Numbness, and Tingling: These sensations can range from a distracting “pins and needles” feeling to severe, burning pain that disrupts sleep and concentration. Numbness can be particularly dangerous, as it may prevent you from noticing minor injuries to your hands or feet.
- Progressive Muscle Weakness: This can manifest as a weakened grip, making it difficult to hold tools, button a shirt, or even grip a steering wheel. In the legs, it can lead to instability, an altered gait, and an increased risk of falls.
- Loss of Sensation: A complete loss of feeling in an area can drastically affect fine motor skills and your interaction with the world around you.
Neurological Disorders in Veterans
Many veterans experience neurological disorders related to their military service:
- Traumatic brain injury (TBI)
- Migraine headaches
- Multiple sclerosis (MS)
- Radiculopathy
- Nerve damage
- Peripheral neuropathy
- Sciatic nerve damage
- Carpal tunnel syndrome
- Spinal cord injury
- Epilepsy
Veterans who served in certain locations during specific time periods may also be at higher risk for developing certain neurological disorders due to exposure to Agent Orange. This includes veterans who served in Vietnam, South Korea, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Johnston Atoll, Guam, or American Samoa at different times.
How the VA Rates Neurological Disorders
The VA evaluates nerve damage by assessing the degree of impairment it causes. Each major nerve in the body has its own set of diagnostic codes, but the ratings generally fall into one of three distinct categories of functional loss.
The VA rates neurological disorders under the 38 CFR 4.124a Schedule of ratings—neurological conditions and convulsive disorders. Your rating will depend on the type of neurological disorder you have and the severity of your symptoms.
If you are a retired service member who requires continuous medication due to a service-connected condition, you might be eligible for a higher rating than someone with a less severe condition. The VA also considers most nerve-related conditions to be chronic, presumptive conditions since they are considered organic nervous system diseases.
1. Paralysis: The Highest Severity
This category addresses the loss of nerve function and commands the highest ratings. Paralysis doesn’t just mean a completely immobile limb; the VA rates it based on a spectrum of severity, from mild to complete.
- Complete Paralysis: The nerve is entirely non-functional. There is no voluntary movement or sensation in the muscles the nerve controls. For example, complete paralysis of the radial nerve would mean you cannot extend your wrist or fingers.
- Incomplete, Severe Paralysis: There is significant loss of function with only minimal, ineffective movement remaining. This is often accompanied by muscle atrophy (wasting away).
- Incomplete, Moderate Paralysis: You can control the affected body part, but it is noticeably weak and often accompanied by symptoms like constant numbness, tingling, or moderate pain.
- Incomplete, Mild Paralysis: This is the lowest rating for paralysis. There is a minor loss of strength or sensation, and symptoms like tingling or pain may be intermittent.
2. Neuritis: Inflammation and Pain
Neuritis involves the inflammation of a nerve, which can cause pain, hypersensitivity, swelling, and a loss of reflexes. The VA rates neuritis based on the severity of the loss of sensory and motor function. To confirm neuritis, the VA may order nerve conduction studies (NCS) or electromyography (EMG) tests to measure nerve activity. A rating for severe neuritis would reflect significant muscle atrophy and a clear loss of reflexes confirmed by a medical examiner.
3. Neuralgia: Severe Nerve Pain
Neuralgia is characterized by intense, sharp, stabbing, or burning pain along the path of a nerve. Unlike paralysis, the primary symptom is pain, not necessarily a loss of motor control. The VA rates neuralgia based on its frequency and severity, from mild and intermittent episodes to severe, prostrating attacks of pain that can be completely debilitating.
Maximizing Your Benefits: Key Factors That Increase Your Rating
Securing a rating for your nerve damage is only part of the equation. Several important VA regulations can significantly increase your overall disability rating and monthly compensation.
A. The Bilateral Factor: Acknowledging a Greater Burden
This is one of the most important rating enhancers for veterans with nerve damage in multiple limbs. The Bilateral Factor is applied when you have a service-connected disability affecting a pair of limbs (both arms or both legs). The VA recognizes that a disability affecting both sides of the body is more than twice as difficult to manage as a disability affecting only one.
Here’s a practical example of how it works:
- Imagine you have a 20% rating for neuritis in your right arm and a 30% rating for neuritis in your left arm.
- Using standard “VA Math,” these two ratings would combine to 44%.
- Because the disability affects both arms, the Bilateral Factor is applied. The VA takes 10% of that combined value (10% of 44 is 4.4) and adds it to the total.
- The 44% + 4.4% = 48.4%. The VA then rounds this to the nearest 10, resulting in a 50% rating. Without the Bilateral Factor, your rating would have remained at 40%.
B. Total Disability Based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU)
What happens if your combined rating is below 100%, but your nerve damage is so severe that you cannot maintain a steady job? You may be eligible for Total Disability Based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU).
TDIU is a critical benefit that allows veterans to be paid at the 100% disability rate because their service-connected conditions prevent them from securing and keeping “substantially gainful employment.” The standard criteria to qualify are:
- You have one service-connected disability rated at 60% or more.
OR - You have two or more service-connected disabilities that combine to 70% or more, with at least one of those disabilities being rated at 40% or more.
Successfully obtaining TDIU requires you to prove that your functional limitations, such as being unable to sit or stand for long periods, difficulty using your hands, or needing unscheduled breaks due to severe pain, make you unemployable.
The path to securing your VA disability benefits for nerve damage is a marathon, not a sprint. It requires persistence, thorough documentation, and a clear understanding of the VA’s rules. By articulating how your symptoms impact your life and ensuring that factors like the Bilateral Factor and TDIU are considered, you can build a powerful case for the benefits you have honorably earned.
Proving Service Connection for Neurological Disorders
To receive VA disability benefits for a neurological disorder, you must be able to prove that your condition is connected to your military service through the following criteria:
- A current diagnosis of a specific neurological disorder
- An in-service event, injury, illness, or aggravation
- A medical nexus (or link) between the current diagnosis and the in-service event, injury, or illness
When filing a VA claim, it is important to specify the connection between your current neurological disorder and your military service. You should use VA Form 21-526EZ for disability compensation claims and provide comprehensive details about your symptoms, medical treatments, and the impact on your daily life.
VA Disability Ratings and Compensation for Neurological Disorders
VA disability ratings for neurological disorders can range from 0% to 100%, depending on the severity and frequency of your symptoms. Your rating will determine the amount of tax-free monthly compensation you receive.
For example, as of 2024, a veteran with a 10% disability rating and no dependents would receive $171.23 per month, while a veteran with a 100% disability rating and no dependents would receive $3,737.85 per month.
Additional Benefits for Veterans with Neurological Disorders
- Healthcare benefits
- Vocational rehabilitation and employment services
- Specially adapted housing grants
- Automobile allowance
- Adaptive equipment
- Aid and attendance or housebound benefits
If your service-connected neurological disorders prevent you from maintaining substantially gainful employment, you may also be eligible for total disability based on individual unemployability (TDIU). This would provide you with a rate equivalent to a 100% VA disability rating.
Common Risk Factors for Neurological Disorders in Veterans
Several factors related to military service can increase a veteran’s risk of developing a neurological disorder:
- Toxic exposure: Exposure to harmful substances such as Agent Orange, burn pits, or other chemicals during military service.
- Traumatic brain injury (TBI): Significant trauma to the head from an object or nearby blast.
- Gulf War Syndrome: A cluster of medically unexplained chronic symptoms that can affect veterans who served in the Gulf War.
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD): A mental health condition that can develop after experiencing a traumatic event, such as combat or sexual assault during military service.
Agent Orange and Neurological Disorders
Veterans exposed to Agent Orange during their service may be at a higher risk for certain neurological disorders. The VA recognizes the following conditions for Agent Orange exposure:
- Parkinson’s disease
- Early-onset peripheral neuropathy
Learn More by Contacting National Disability Benefits Today!
If you are a veteran suffering from a neurological disorder and believe it may be connected to your military service, you should get help with filing a VA disability claim. The team at National Disability Benefits can help you with the complex VA disability claims process and make sure that you receive the benefits you deserve.
To learn more about the VA’s thresholds and benefits for nerve damage, contact us online today or call (844) 777-0615