- Diagnostic code
- 5235-5243 / 5257 / 5200-5203
- Rating scale
- 0-100
- Presumptive?
- no
- PACT Act covered?
- no
Musculoskeletal Ratings
Back, knee, and shoulder conditions are rated primarily based on range-of-motion measurements taken during C&P exams. Many veterans are underrated because: the measurement was taken when symptoms were not at their worst (flare-up doctrine), secondary radiculopathy was not separately rated, or multiple levels of the spine were rated as a single condition.
Under the flare-up doctrine, the VA must account for how functional impairment worsens during periods of increased pain — not just baseline range of motion measured at a single exam.