Carpal tunnel: median nerve DC 8515
Listed in the rating schedule as “Paralysis of the median nerve”. VA rates it under diagnostic code 8515 in 38 CFR 4.124a. Body system: Head & nerves.
Also searched as: carpal tunnel, carpal tunnel syndrome, CTS, median nerve.
How VA rates it
The schedule allows 7 rating levels for this code: 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, 50%, 60%, and 70%. VA picks the level whose criteria best match your symptoms and records.
Higher levels apply to the dominant hand.
It affects one arm, so each side is rated on its own. When both sides are rated, VA adds the bilateral factor (38 CFR 4.26).
Source: 38 CFR 4.124a on eCFR. Read the full criteria there before you file.
Rating levels and criteria
| Rating | What the schedule says |
|---|---|
| 70%60% minor | Complete; the hand inclined to the ulnar side, the index and middle fingers more extended than normally, considerable atrophy of the muscles of the thenar eminence, the thumb in the plane of the hand (ape hand); pronation incomplete and defective, absence of flexion of index finger and feeble flexion of middle finger, cannot make a fist, index and middle fingers remain extended; cannot flex distal phalanx of thumb, defective opposition and abduction of the thumb, at right angles to palm; flexion of wrist weakened; pain with trophic disturbances |
| 50%40% minor | Incomplete:Severe |
| 30%20% minor | Incomplete:Moderate |
| 10% | Incomplete:Mild |
Where two ratings are shown, the first is for your major (dominant) arm and the second for the minor arm (38 CFR 4.69).
Criteria text from 38 CFR 4.124a, eCFR as of November 10, 2026. The eCFR is the official source if anything here differs.
Commonly claimed as secondary to
If one of these is already service connected, you may be able to claim this condition as secondary to it.
Diabetes (type 2) DC 7913 Established link Rated separately
Diabetic nerve damage in the hands and arms is rated separately for each arm.
What to gather: A diagnosis of diabetic peripheral neuropathy of the arms or hands in your records. Compensable diabetes complications get their own rating; ones rated 0% are counted as part of your diabetes rating.
Sources: 38 CFR 4.119, DC 7913 Note (1): rate compensable diabetes complications separately; NIDDK (NIH): Diabetic neuropathy; 38 CFR 4.124a (nerve and neurological ratings)
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Rating schedule data as of November 10, 2026. Secondary and presumptive links checked November 13, 2026.
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