Body system: Digestive SystemRegulation: 38 CFR § 4.114DBQ: DBQ GI Rectum & Anus
Rectal prolapse happens when part of your rectum (the last part of your large intestine) slides out through your anus. The VA rates this condition from 10% to 100% based on how severe the prolapse is and whether it can be pushed back in (reduced). Higher ratings go to veterans whose prolapse stays out permanently or needs manual help to go back in, while lower ratings are for cases where it goes back in on its own.
Rating levels
- 100% — Persistent irreducible prolapse means the rectum (the last part of the large intestine) has permanently dropped down and is sticking out of the anus, and it cannot be pushed back into place either by the person or by a doctor. This condition is ongoing and constant, whether or not it can potentially be fixed with surgery.
- 50% — You have a rectal prolapse (part of your rectum slides out of your anus) that you can push back in by hand, but doctors cannot surgically fix it permanently. The prolapse happens randomly throughout the day, not just when you're having a bowel movement, straining, or holding your breath and bearing down.
- 30% — You have a condition where part of your rectum pushes outside your body, but you can push it back in by hand. This prolapse cannot be surgically fixed and only happens when you have a bowel movement, do physical activity, or strain (like when holding your breath and bearing down). The prolapse doesn't happen all the time - just during these specific activities.
- 10% — Part of your rectum slips outside the body (prolapse) and goes back in on its own, without you or a doctor pushing it (spontaneously reducible). Surgery cannot repair it, so it keeps recurring. A prolapse you have to push back by hand is the 30% or 50% level above.