Body system: Muscle InjuriesRegulation: 38 CFR § 4.73
This diagnostic code covers injuries to the muscles that straighten your elbow - mainly the triceps muscle on the back of your upper arm. The VA rates these injuries from 0% to 30% based on how severely the muscle damage affects your ability to extend (straighten) your elbow. Higher ratings go to veterans who have significant weakness or loss of function when trying to push or straighten their arm.
Rating levels
- 40% — Your elbow muscles that straighten your arm (triceps and anconeus) are severely damaged or weakened. You have significant difficulty or inability to fully extend your elbow joint, which also affects shoulder stability since the triceps muscle helps support your shoulder. This severe level means you experience major functional limitations when trying to straighten your arm or perform activities that require extending your elbow.
- 30% — You have severe damage to the muscles that straighten your elbow, primarily the triceps muscle on the back of your upper arm. This means you have significant difficulty or inability to fully extend (straighten) your arm at the elbow, which also affects shoulder stability since the triceps helps support that joint. Your arm weakness substantially limits everyday activities like reaching, lifting, or pushing objects.
- 30% — You have moderate to severe weakness or damage in the muscles that straighten your elbow (mainly the triceps muscle on the back of your upper arm). This level of injury significantly limits your ability to fully extend or straighten your elbow against resistance, making it difficult to perform activities like pushing objects away from your body, doing push-ups, or lifting items overhead.
- 20% — You have moderately severe damage to the muscles that straighten your elbow - mainly the triceps (the large muscle on the back of your upper arm) and a smaller muscle called the anconeus. This means you have significant difficulty extending or straightening your elbow fully, which also affects shoulder stability since part of the triceps helps support your shoulder joint.
- 10% — You have moderate difficulty straightening your arm at the elbow due to weakness or damage in your triceps muscle (the large muscle on the back of your upper arm) or the smaller anconeus muscle that also helps extend the elbow. This means you can still straighten your arm but with noticeable weakness, reduced strength, or some limitation in how fully you can extend it compared to normal function.
- 10% — You have moderate difficulty straightening your arm at the elbow due to weakness or damage in your triceps muscle (the large muscle on the back of your upper arm) or the smaller anconeus muscle that also helps extend the elbow. This means you can still straighten your arm but with noticeable weakness, reduced strength, or some limitation in how fully you can extend it compared to normal function.
- 0% — You have slight problems with the muscles that straighten your elbow (the triceps muscle in the back of your upper arm and a smaller muscle called the anconeus). Your elbow extension is minimally affected - you can still straighten your arm almost completely but might notice minor weakness, stiffness, or slight difficulty when pushing or lifting objects away from your body.
- 0% — You have slight problems with the muscles that straighten your elbow (the triceps muscle in the back of your upper arm and a smaller muscle called the anconeus). Your elbow extension is minimally affected - you can still straighten your arm almost completely but might notice minor weakness, stiffness, or slight difficulty when pushing or lifting objects away from your body.