On this page
- Tendonitis and bursitis VA rating criteria
- How the rating works joint by joint
- Painful motion, flare-ups and the 10 percent floor
- How much VA pays for tendonitis and bursitis
- How to prove tendonitis or bursitis is service connected
- The C&P exam and the DBQ
- Why VA denies tendonitis and bursitis claims
- Questions veterans ask about tendonitis and bursitis
- Sources
If you search the rating schedule for tendonitis, you find DC 5024, "Tenosynovitis, tendinitis, tendinosis or tendinopathy," and no percentages next to it. Bursitis, DC 5019, is the same. Both sit in a group of codes with one shared instruction, and that instruction decides almost every tendonitis and bursitis claim.
This page explains how VA turns a tendon or bursa problem into a rating, what that means for the hip, shoulder, ankle and wrist, how painful motion and flare-ups raise the number, and the ways these claims get denied. Tennis elbow has its own section on the elbow page, and the Board section further down shows how tendonitis and bursitis appeals have ended.
Tendonitis and bursitis VA rating criteria
38 CFR § 4.71a lists the soft tissue codes together, with no percentages beside them:
| Code | Schedule name |
|---|---|
| DC 5019 | Bursitis |
| DC 5021 | Myositis |
| DC 5023 | Heterotopic ossification |
| DC 5024 | Tenosynovitis, tendinitis, tendinosis or tendinopathy |
A note after DC 5024 gives the rule for all of them (and for the bone diseases listed before them):
Note to DCs 5013 through 5024: Evaluate the diseases under diagnostic codes 5013 through 5024 as degenerative arthritis, based on limitation of motion of affected parts.
Degenerative arthritis is DC 5003. Its first rule sends the rating to the joint's own motion code, and its second rule is the floor:
When however, the limitation of motion of the specific joint or joints involved is noncompensable under the appropriate diagnostic codes, a rating of 10 pct is for application for each such major joint or group of minor joints affected by limitation of motion, to be combined, not added under diagnostic code 5003. Limitation of motion must be objectively confirmed by findings such as swelling, muscle spasm, or satisfactory evidence of painful motion.
One part of DC 5003 does not carry over. Arthritis can be rated 10 or 20 percent on X-rays alone, but Note (2) says those X-ray ratings "will not be utilized in rating conditions listed under diagnostic codes 5013 to 5024, inclusive." Tendonitis and bursitis need limited or painful motion.
Under 38 CFR § 4.45(f), the shoulder, elbow, wrist, hip, knee and ankle are the major joints. Groups of small joints, such as the finger joints of one hand, count as a group of minor joints on a par with a major joint.
How the rating works joint by joint
Because the joint's motion code sets the number, the same tendonitis can rate very differently depending on where it is. These are the main tables, from § 4.71a.
Shoulder (DC 5201), rotator cuff tendonitis and shoulder bursitis. The dominant arm and the other arm have different columns.
| Arm motion (flexion or abduction) | Dominant (major) arm | Other (minor) arm |
|---|---|---|
| Limited to 25 degrees from the side | 40% | 30% |
| Limited to 45 degrees (midway to shoulder level) | 30% | 20% |
| Limited to 90 degrees (shoulder level) | 20% | 20% |
The shoulder page and the rotator cuff page cover the rest of the shoulder codes.
Hip (DCs 5251 to 5253), trochanteric bursitis and hip tendonitis. Flexion limited to 45 degrees rates 10 percent, to 30 degrees 20 percent, to 20 degrees 30 percent and to 10 degrees 40 percent. Extension limited to 5 degrees rates 10 percent. Under DC 5253, losing abduction beyond 10 degrees rates 20 percent, and being unable to cross your legs or toe out more than 15 degrees rates 10 percent. See the hip page.
Ankle (DC 5271), Achilles tendonitis. The ankle code spells out its two levels: "Marked (less than 5 degrees dorsiflexion or less than 10 degrees plantar flexion)" rates 20 percent, and "Moderate (less than 15 degrees dorsiflexion or less than 30 degrees plantar flexion)" rates 10 percent.
The ankle page has the rest of the ankle codes.
Wrist (DC 5215), de Quervain's tenosynovitis. The wrist code tops out at 10 percent, for dorsiflexion under 15 degrees or palmar flexion limited in line with the forearm. See the wrist page.
Knee (DCs 5260 and 5261), patellar tendonitis and knee bursitis. Flexion limited to 45 degrees rates 10 percent and extension limited to 10 degrees rates 10 percent, rising from there. The knee page has the full tables.
The rating section near the top of this page has no table for tendonitis or bursitis because the schedule has none. The percentage always comes from one of the joint tables above.
Painful motion, flare-ups and the 10 percent floor
Most tendonitis and bursitis claims are won or lost on pain, not on degrees of motion. A tendon can hurt badly while the joint still moves almost normally.
38 CFR § 4.59 says the schedule intends "to recognize actually painful, unstable, or malaligned joints, due to healed injury, as entitled to at least the minimum compensable rating for the joint." Put together with the DC 5003 floor, a major joint with tendonitis or bursitis and painful motion confirmed on exam should reach 10 percent even when the measured motion would rate 0.
The last sentence of § 4.59 tells examiners how to test: joints should be tested "for pain on both active and passive motion, in weight-bearing and nonweight-bearing." In Correia v. McDonald, 28 Vet. App. 158 (2016), the Court held that, when possible, VA joint exams must include those tests and a comparison with the opposite, undamaged joint.
Flare-ups and repeated use matter as well. Under 38 CFR §§ 4.40 and 4.45, functional loss from pain, weakness, fatigue and lack of endurance counts toward the rating. In Sharp v. Shulkin, 29 Vet. App. 26 (2017), the Court held that an examiner must ask about flare-ups and estimate the lost motion during them from all the evidence, including your description, or explain why not. A shoulder that reaches overhead on a good morning and stops at shoulder level after a day of work should be rated with both pictures in view.
How much VA pays for tendonitis and bursitis
Because the percentage comes from the joint table, there is no single answer. At VA's rates effective December 1, 2025, a veteran alone receives $180.42 a month at 10 percent, $356.66 at 20 percent, $552.47 at 30 percent and $795.84 at 40 percent. Each affected joint is rated on its own.
Ratings on both arms or both legs pick up the bilateral factor under 38 CFR § 4.26 when VA combines them. The combined rating calculator shows the effect.
How to prove tendonitis or bursitis is service connected
Overuse and injury in service
Tendon and bursa problems are overuse injuries, and military training produces plenty of them. In the Millennium Cohort, medical records for 80,106 active-duty personnel followed over one year showed 450 cases of Achilles tendinitis and 584 of patellar tendinopathy; overweight service members were more likely to develop Achilles tendinopathy (Owens and colleagues, 2013). A study of de Quervain's tenosynovitis across the military's medical encounter database counted 11,332 cases, with a rate of 2.8 per 1,000 person-years in women against 0.6 in men, and higher rates after age 40 (Wolf and colleagues, 2009).
A direct claim needs a current diagnosis, an in-service event, injury or overuse, and a medical opinion linking them. Sick call notes, physical therapy records and profiles from service are the strongest in-service evidence. If treatment was never charted, statements from you and the people who served with you about the injury and the limits it caused are competent evidence of what happened. The buddy letter tool helps you write one.
Secondary to a service-connected joint or the way you walk
Under 38 CFR § 3.310, a condition caused or aggravated by a service-connected condition is service connected. Hip bursitis and Achilles tendonitis often follow a service-connected knee, back or foot problem that changed how you walk. The opinion should say both that the service-connected condition caused the tendonitis and that it aggravated it, meaning the tendonitis would be less severe but for that condition; an opinion that skips aggravation is inadequate under El-Amin v. Shinseki, 26 Vet. App. 136 (2013).
Secondary to a medication
Fluoroquinolone antibiotics, such as ciprofloxacin and levofloxacin, carry a known risk of tendon injury. A meta-analysis of 15 observational studies found fluoroquinolone treatment linked to higher odds of Achilles tendon rupture, Achilles tendinitis and tendon disorders in general, with older age and steroid use adding risk (Alves and colleagues, 2019). If the antibiotic or a steroid was prescribed to treat a service-connected condition, the tendon injury can be claimed as secondary to that condition. If VA prescribed it and the harm came from VA care, a claim under 38 USC 1151 is another route.
The C&P exam and the DBQ
VA examines tendonitis and bursitis with the DBQ for the joint involved: shoulder and arm, hip and thigh, knee and lower leg, ankle, wrist or elbow and forearm. Each one records range of motion, pain on motion, repeated-use testing and flare-ups.
Before the exam:
- Write down your flare-ups. How often, how long, what sets them off, and what you cannot do during one. The examiner is supposed to use this.
- Say where it hurts during the motion. Pain that starts partway through a movement is where the rating comes from. Stop and say so when it starts.
- Bring your treatment history. Physical therapy, injections and bracing show the problem is ongoing. Raven Scan reads your medical records and pulls out the joint findings and treatment dates the DBQ asks about.
Why VA denies tendonitis and bursitis claims
The Board section below shows what the Board found missing in denied tendonitis and bursitis appeals and why it sent others back. These are the patterns behind those numbers.
No current diagnosis. Tendonitis often comes and goes. If it was quiet on exam day and nothing in your records names it, VA may find no current disability. Treatment records and a diagnosis from a doctor during an active period matter. Under McClain v. Nicholson, 21 Vet. App. 319 (2007), the current disability requirement is met if the condition existed at any time while the claim was pending.
No link to service. An examiner may call it age-related or the result of civilian work. A favorable opinion has to address your duties and any in-service treatment.
No in-service event. Overuse is rarely charted as an injury. Describe the duties, the training and when the pain started.
An inadequate exam. An exam that skips flare-ups, never tests passive or weight-bearing motion, or ignores pain on motion is the kind the Board finds inadequate and sends back. Correia and Sharp are the cases to cite.
Pyramiding. If a joint is already rated for arthritis or limited motion, VA cannot rate the same lost motion again as tendonitis under 38 CFR § 4.14. A separate rating needs separate symptoms, such as instability or a different joint.
Questions veterans ask about tendonitis and bursitis
What is the VA rating for tendonitis?
Tendonitis is rated under DC 5024 as degenerative arthritis, on the limited motion of the joint it affects. The joint's own table sets the percentage, and painful motion confirmed on exam can support 10 percent per major joint even when the measured motion would rate 0.
What is the VA rating for bursitis?
Bursitis is rated the same way under DC 5019. Hip bursitis usually rates under the hip motion codes, often at 10 percent, and shoulder bursitis under DC 5201, at 20 to 40 percent depending on how far you can raise the arm.
What is the VA rating for Achilles tendonitis?
It is rated on ankle motion under DC 5271: 10 percent for moderate limitation (less than 15 degrees of dorsiflexion or less than 30 degrees of plantar flexion) and 20 percent for marked limitation (less than 5 degrees or less than 10 degrees).
Can I get 10 percent for painful motion alone?
Usually yes for a major joint, if the exam confirms painful motion. DC 5003 gives 10 percent per major joint when limitation of motion is noncompensable but confirmed by findings such as swelling, muscle spasm or painful motion, and § 4.59 supports at least the minimum rating for an actually painful joint.
Can tendonitis be rated on top of arthritis in the same joint?
Not for the same lost motion. 38 CFR § 4.14 bars rating the same symptom twice. A separate rating needs a separate problem, such as instability, or a different joint.
Is tennis elbow rated as tendonitis?
Tennis elbow (lateral epicondylitis) is a tendon condition, so it is rated through elbow and forearm motion. The elbow page covers those codes.
Sources
- 38 CFR § 4.71a, DCs 5003, 5019, 5024 and the joint motion codes (opens in a new tab), eCFR text as of October 2, 2026
- 38 CFR § 4.59, painful motion (opens in a new tab)
- 38 CFR § 4.40 and § 4.45, functional loss and the joints (opens in a new tab)
- 38 CFR § 4.14, avoiding pyramiding (opens in a new tab)
- 38 CFR § 4.26, bilateral factor (opens in a new tab)
- 38 CFR § 3.310, secondary service connection (opens in a new tab)
- Correia v. McDonald, 28 Vet. App. 158 (2016); Sharp v. Shulkin, 29 Vet. App. 26 (2017); McClain v. Nicholson, 21 Vet. App. 319 (2007); El-Amin v. Shinseki, 26 Vet. App. 136 (2013)
- Owens BD, Wolf JM, Seelig AD, and colleagues. Risk factors for lower extremity tendinopathies in military personnel. Orthop J Sports Med. 2013;1(1). doi:10.1177/2325967113492707 (opens in a new tab)
- Wolf JM, Sturdivant RX, Owens BD. Incidence of de Quervain's tenosynovitis in a young, active population. J Hand Surg Am. 2009;34(1):112-115. doi:10.1016/j.jhsa.2008.08.020 (opens in a new tab)
- Alves C, Mendes D, Marques FB. Fluoroquinolones and the risk of tendon injury: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Eur J Clin Pharmacol. 2019;75(10):1431-1443. doi:10.1007/s00228-019-02713-1 (opens in a new tab)
- VA disability compensation rates (opens in a new tab), effective December 1, 2025