Body system: Digestive SystemRegulation: 38 CFR § 4.114DBQ: DBQ GI Liver Conditions
Cirrhosis is scarring of the liver that happens when healthy liver tissue gets replaced by scar tissue over time. The VA rates cirrhosis based on how severe your symptoms are and uses something called the MELD score (a blood test calculation that shows how well your liver is working). Ratings range from 0% for no symptoms to 100% for severe, life-threatening liver disease with complications like fluid buildup in your belly or confusion from liver failure.
Rating levels
- 100% — Your liver disease must be severe enough to either score 15 or higher on a specific medical test that measures how badly your liver is failing, or you must have daily symptoms that make you feel extremely weak and debilitated. Additionally, you need to have at least one of these serious complications: fluid buildup in your belly (ascites), a history of a dangerous abdominal infection (spontaneous bacterial peritonitis), confusion or mental changes from liver toxins (hepatic encephalopathy), bleeding from swollen veins in your throat or stomach (variceal hemorrhage), blood clotting problems (coagulopathy), stomach bleeding related to liver pressure (portal gastropathy), or lung/kidney problems caused by your liver disease (hepatopulmonary or hepatorenal syndrome).
- 60% — You qualify for this rating if your liver disease scores between 12-14 on a specific medical test that measures how severe your liver damage is (called the MELD score). You can also qualify if you experience daily fatigue plus had at least one serious episode in the past year of either bleeding from swollen veins in your esophagus or stomach, stomach problems caused by high blood pressure in your liver, or confusion and mental changes caused by your liver not filtering toxins properly.
- 30% — Your liver disease qualifies if you have a MELD score (a blood test that measures how well your liver is working) of 10 or 11. You can also qualify if you have signs that blood pressure is building up in your liver, like an enlarged spleen or fluid collecting in your belly, plus you're experiencing at least one of these symptoms: weakness, loss of appetite, stomach pain, or feeling generally unwell.
- 10% — To qualify for this rating level, you need liver disease with a MELD score (a blood test that measures how well your liver is working) between 7 and 9, OR you must have symptoms like loss of appetite, weakness, stomach pain, or general feeling of being unwell. The MELD score uses lab results to predict how severe your liver disease is, with higher numbers meaning worse liver function.
- 0% — You have cirrhosis of the liver (scarring of the liver tissue), but you're not experiencing any symptoms from it right now. Your medical records show you've been diagnosed with liver disease in the past, but the condition isn't currently causing you any noticeable problems or limitations in your daily activities.