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Varicose veins and post-phlebitic syndrome — rated per leg by edema, skin changes, ulceration and the need to elevate. This guide quotes the actual rating criteria from 38 CFR Part 4 for diagnostic code 7120, explains what the C&P examiner measures, covers the presumptive and secondary routes to service connection, and lists the reasons these claims come back denied — and how each gets fixed.
How the VA rates varicose veins in 2026 — the exact criteria
These are the criteria a VA rater applies, quoted from the rating schedule (§ 4.104). Your rating is the highest level whose wording your evidence meets — and evidence that never uses these words tends to be rated at the bottom.
DC 7120 — Varicose veins (evaluated under DC 7121, post-phlebitic syndrome)
| Rating | Criteria (38 CFR Part 4 wording) |
|---|---|
| 100% | Massive board-like edema with constant pain at rest |
| 60% | Persistent edema or subcutaneous induration, stasis pigmentation or eczema, and persistent ulceration |
| 40% | Persistent edema and stasis pigmentation or eczema, with or without intermittent ulceration |
| 20% | Persistent edema, incompletely relieved by elevation of extremity, with or without beginning stasis pigmentation or eczema |
| 10% | Intermittent edema of extremity or aching and fatigue in leg after prolonged standing or walking, with symptoms relieved by elevation of extremity or compression hosiery |
| 0% | Asymptomatic palpable or visible varicose veins |
These evaluations are for a single extremity. If more than one extremity is involved, each is rated separately and combined, using the bilateral factor (§ 4.26) if applicable.
Honest ceiling: 40% PER LEG with persistent edema and skin changes.
What the C&P examiner measures
The examiner records edema, whether it is relieved by elevation, stasis pigmentation, eczema, ulceration, and the use of compression hosiery — per leg. Photographs of swelling at the end of a work day help.
The questions that get at the rating criteria — answer them for yourself before the exam:
- Do your legs ache and swell by the end of the day — do you have to put them up?
Service connection: presumptive, direct, or secondary
No presumption. Direct service connection from prolonged standing, in-service diagnosis, or an in-service deep-vein thrombosis; secondary to obesity from a connected condition or to a connected leg injury.
Every service-connection claim has three legs: a current diagnosis (the C&P exam can supply it), an in-service event, injury, exposure or an already-connected condition, and a link between the two — which the VA's own examiner addresses at the exam for direct and secondary claims, and which the law supplies for presumptive ones. You do not need a private opinion to file; you need one only if the VA denies for lack of nexus, and a supplemental claim within one year keeps your effective date.
Secondary conditions veterans miss
This condition is more often the secondary in a chain than the anchor — see the secondary-claims guides for the recognized pathways.
What the medical literature says
Tüchsen F. et al., Occupational and Environmental Medicine 62:847-50 (2005) — Prolonged standing at work and hospitalisation due to varicose veins
12-year prospective study: prolonged occupational standing carries ~1.8x risk of varicose veins. Why it matters: Varicose veins from standing-heavy duty (guard, flight line, mess, deck).
Why varicose veins claims get denied — and the fix
- Both legs involved but rated as one — each extremity is rated separately with the bilateral factor.
A denial is a grade on the evidence packet, not a verdict on you. Filed as a supplemental claim within one year, the fix keeps your original effective date.
Filing it right the first time
- Intent to File first. It locks your effective date for a year — back pay runs from that day, not from the day the package is ready.
- File everything at once. Every condition with a real symptom and a plausible route — direct, presumptive, secondary, increase — goes in one claim. The VA's duty to assist schedules the exam and pulls your records; a condition held back "for more evidence" only starts its clock later.
- Your statement in the criteria's words. A Statement in Support of Claim (VA Form 21-4138) that describes your worst days and your typical days using the language in the table above is the evidence the rater reads first.
- Your records. VA records through Blue Button, decision letters and code sheet from VA.gov, and private records from each doctor's office or patient portal — or a signed 21-4142 so the VA pulls them.
- Prepare for the exam. Know what the examiner measures (above) and answer honestly, including the bad days.
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See If You Qualify →Frequently asked questions
What is the VA rating for varicose veins?
Varicose Veins is rated under diagnostic code 7120 (§ 4.104) at 0%, 10%, 20%, 40%, 60%, 100%. The percentage depends on which criteria in the rating schedule your evidence meets — the full table is on this page.
What is the highest VA rating for varicose veins?
The highest schedular rating available is 100%. Typical grants land around 10%, but every case is decided on its own evidence.
Is varicose veins a presumptive condition?
No presumption. Direct service connection from prolonged standing, in-service diagnosis, or an in-service deep-vein thrombosis; secondary to obesity from a connected condition or to a connected leg injury.
Do I need a nexus letter for varicose veins?
Not to file. The VA's duty to assist schedules a C&P exam where its own examiner addresses the connection, and presumptive conditions need no opinion at all. A private opinion becomes worth buying only if the VA denies for lack of nexus — a supplemental claim within one year keeps your original effective date.
Rating criteria verified against eCFR (38 CFR Part 4) — last reviewed 2026-09-19. Regulations change; confirm anything decision-critical at ecfr.gov.