Neurological Conditions and Convulsive Disorders§ 4.124aUpdated
Rating criteria

VA Diagnostic Code 8210Paralysis of: [Tenth (pneumogastric, vagus) cranial nerve]

Rated from 10% to 50% under § 4.124a. Here is what the VA requires at each level.

View official source

Not the right code?

The ladder

What each rating requires

The VA assigns the highest level your evidence actually supports. Read up the stack until your records stop matching.

  1. 50%

    Complete

  2. 30%

    Incomplete, severe

  3. 10%

    Incomplete, moderate

From the schedule

Notes on this code

These notes are part of the regulation. They change how the levels above are applied.

  • Note : Dependent upon extent of sensory and motor loss to organs of voice, respiration, pharynx, stomach and heart.

Paralysis of the Tenth (Vagus) Cranial Nerve — VA Diagnostic Code 8210

Body System: Neurological Conditions and Convulsive Disorders Regulation: 38 CFR § 4.124a Diagnostic Code: 8210

What This Condition Involves

The tenth cranial nerve — also called the pneumogastric or vagus nerve — helps control several important functions in the body. When this nerve is paralyzed, it can affect the organs involved in voice, respiration (breathing), the pharynx (throat), the stomach, and the heart.

The VA evaluates this condition under Diagnostic Code 8210, which is part of the rating schedule for neurological conditions.

Available Rating Levels

The VA assigns a disability rating based on how the paralysis is classified. The available levels for this diagnostic code are:

RatingClassification
50%Complete
30%Incomplete, severe
10%Incomplete, moderate
  • Complete (50%): The paralysis is complete.
  • Incomplete, severe (30%): The paralysis is incomplete and classified as severe.
  • Incomplete, moderate (10%): The paralysis is incomplete and classified as moderate.

What the VA Looks For

When rating paralysis of the vagus nerve, the VA's evaluation is dependent upon the extent of sensory and motor loss to the organs the nerve serves — specifically the organs of voice, respiration, pharynx, stomach, and heart.

In other words, the rating reflects how much function has been affected across these areas, and whether the paralysis is considered complete or incomplete (moderate or severe).

This overview is based on the VA rating schedule for Diagnostic Code 8210. Individual evaluations depend on the specific medical evidence in each case.

These criteria are a rendering of § 4.124a, diagnostic code 8210. The official version is the one that governs your rating.

View official source
What next

How to claim this

Knowing the criteria is the first half. Getting your file to show them is the second.

  1. Find your level in the stack

    Read each rung against what your medical records already say. The level your records document today is the one the VA can support today.

  2. Name the gap

    Look at the rung above yours and write down exactly what it asks for that your file does not show yet — a diagnosis, a measurement, a prescribed brace, a doctor’s opinion linking it to service.

  3. Claim it by code

    File under diagnostic code 8210 and attach the evidence for the level you are asking for. Other Neurological Conditions and Convulsive Disorders codes may cover your secondary conditions.

Find out which rating your evidence supports.

Six reads your records against these exact criteria and tells you what the VA is still missing.

Start for freeAll 119 Neurological Conditions and Convulsive Disorders codes →