← All secondary claims · Ratings by condition
A secondary claim is a condition caused or worsened by one the VA has already service-connected. The causation fight is already half-won — the VA agreed your ptsd came from service; the question is only whether it caused the ibs. That's a medical question with a recognized answer.
The connection
The gut-brain axis is real medicine, not a metaphor — functional GI disorders like IBS track closely with chronic stress and PTSD in the research literature. For Gulf War-era veterans there may also be a direct presumptive path; for everyone else, secondary to a service-connected mental health condition is the recognized theory.
How the VA rates ibs
Frequency-rated: 10% = abdominal pain tied to bowel movements at least once in the last 3 months · 20% = at least 3 days/month · 30% = at least 1 day/WEEK — each plus 2 or more of: stool frequency/form changes, straining or urgency, mucus, bloating, distension.
Full criteria and evidence guide: VA rating for ibs / gut.
What the claim needs — the three legs
- The anchor: service connection for the ptsd (see how that condition is rated). Not connected yet? File it first — a secondary claim needs something to attach to.
- A current diagnosis of ibs — the VA rates diagnosed conditions, not symptoms.
- The medical link. An opinion stating it is "at least as likely as not" that the ptsd caused or aggravated the ibs. The VA's own C&P examiner supplies this free in most cases; your own doctor can too. A paid independent opinion is the last resort, not the first move.
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