Claw Foot (Pes Cavus)
Claw foot is rated under Diagnostic Code 5278 based on severity: slight, moderate, severe, or pronounced. The condition involves arches that are too high. Separate evaluations for claw foot and hammer toe on the same foot are not allowed. Separate evaluations for claw foot and hallux rigidus on the same foot are not allowed.
VA Rating Levels
Slight: symptoms relieved by built-up shoe or arch support.
Moderate: great toe dorsiflexed, some limitation of dorsiflexion at ankle, definite tenderness under metatarsal heads. (10% bilateral or unilateral.)
Severe (unilateral): all toes tending to dorsiflexion, limitation of dorsiflexion at ankle to right angle, shortened plantar fascia, and marked tenderness under metatarsal heads.
Severe (bilateral) or Pronounced (unilateral): marked contraction of plantar fascia with dropped forefoot, all toes hammer toes, very painful callosities, marked varus deformity.
Pronounced (bilateral): marked contraction of plantar fascia with dropped forefoot, all toes hammer toes, very painful callosities, marked varus deformity.
Exam Tips & Key Evidence
- →You can't receive both a claw foot rating and a hammer toe rating for the same foot.
- →The same applies to claw foot and hallux rigidus. Only one of those ratings is allowed per foot.
Commonly Related Conditions
38 CFR Reference
38 CFR 4.71a, Diagnostic Code 5278