Crisis?Call 988, press 1Text 838255Chat with the Veterans Crisis Line (opens in a new window)

Skip to content
Helping The Brave, because no brave fights alone
← All exam guidesClaim Navigator

Get ready for your exam

Ankle

What it is

Your ankle is the joint between your leg and foot; VA rates how far you can pull your toes up toward your shin and point them down.

Normal movement (what VA counts as normal)

  • Dorsiflexion (toes up toward shin)0 to 20°
  • Plantar flexion (point toes down)0 to 45°

VA's code numbers for this: 5270, 5271, 5272, 5273, 5274, 5056

What the examiner will do

  • The examiner asks how and when the problem started, what treatment you have had, and how it affects work and daily life.
  • They ask about flare-ups: how often, how long, what sets them off, and what you cannot do during one.
  • They measure how far you can move the joint yourself (active motion) with a goniometer. They should note where pain begins.
  • They move the joint for you (passive motion). They test it with weight on it and without weight on it. They compare it to your other side if that side is healthy. (Correia v. McDonald, 2016; 38 CFR 4.59.)
  • They have you repeat each motion at least 3 times, then measure again (repetitive-use testing).
  • They check strength, muscle loss (atrophy), tenderness, and whether the joint is stuck (ankylosis).
  • They look at X-rays or other imaging, or order them.
  • They ask about braces, canes, or other devices and how often you use them.
  • Stability tests for ankle ligaments and questions about ankle sprains that keep coming back.

The examiner fills out a form called a DBQ. You can read it ahead of time: Ankle Conditions DBQ (updated 2026-07-29) (opens VA's site).

The rating levels, in plain words

VA rates most joints by how far they move. The less you can move, the higher the level.

Dorsiflexion or plantar flexion

  • 10%

    Moderate: can you pull your toes up less than 15 degrees, OR point them down less than 30 degrees? That is 10%.

    Rule: 38 CFR 4.71a, DC 5271

  • 20%

    Marked: pull toes up less than 5 degrees, OR point down less than 10 degrees: 20%.

    Rule: 38 CFR 4.71a, DC 5271

Ankylosis

  • 20%

    Ankle fused pointing down less than 30 degrees: 20%. Pointing down 30-40, or up 0-10: 30%. Pointing down more than 40, up more than 10, or twisted in/out: 40%.

    Rule: 38 CFR 4.71a, DC 5270

Heel/ankle bone joints

  • 10%

    Fused rear-foot joints in a good weight-bearing position 10%, poor position 20% (DC 5272). Heel or ankle bone healed crooked: moderate 10%, marked 20% (DC 5273). Ankle bone removed: 20% (DC 5274).

    Rule: 38 CFR 4.71a, DCs 5272-5274

Painful motion

  • 10%

    Near-normal but painful motion from injury or arthritis: at least 10%.

    Rule: 38 CFR 4.59; DC 5003

Measured at home? Check which level your number falls in.

Measure it at home

With a helper and a cheap tool. Your home numbers help you describe your bad days honestly at the exam.

The tool to get

  • Best: a clear plastic goniometer (say GO-nee-OM-eh-ter). It looks like a protractor with two long arms joined by a pin. A 12-inch, 360-degree one costs about $5 to $10 online or at a medical supply store. This is the same kind of tool most examiners use.

  • Free: a phone goniometer or inclinometer (angle-measuring) app. Many are free. Tape or hold the phone flat along the body part, set it to zero at the start, then move.

  • No money and no phone: print a paper protractor (half circle, 0 to 180 degrees) on stiff paper. Tape two straws or paper strips to the center with a brad so they swing. Lay it against the joint.

  • A pen and the log sheet below. A second person (spouse, adult child, friend) to hold the tool, because you cannot measure yourself well.

  • An 8-inch goniometer is easier for the ankle, but a 12-inch one works.

No tool yet? Print our paper protractor below.

Step by step, with a helper

  1. 1. Dorsiflexion (toes up)

    How to stand or lie
    Sit on a chair with your knee bent and foot flat, or sit on a bed with the leg straight. Pull your toes up toward your shin.
    Where the tool goes
    Pin just below the outside ankle bone. Fixed arm runs up the outside of the shin toward the bump below the outside of the knee. Moving arm runs along the outside edge of the foot. At rest the tool shows about 90; count how many degrees you move from there.
    Who holds what
    Helper reads the change at 'pain' and at stop. Do not let the knee move.

  2. 2. Plantar flexion (point down)

    How to stand or lie
    Same position. Point your toes down like pressing a gas pedal.
    Where the tool goes
    Same placement. Count degrees moved down from the starting 90.
    Who holds what
    Helper reads at 'pain' and at stop.

Stop at the first real pain. Never force a joint to get a number. Stand close for balance during back and hip tests.

Check your number

1. Which motion did you measure?

Type the number where you had to stop.

degrees

Type your number above to see where it falls.

This is only to help you understand. The VA examiner measures and the VA decides.

The levels for dorsiflexion (pull toes up toward your shin):

  • 0° to 4°20%
  • 5° to 14°10%

If your number is close to the next level, VA may give the higher one (38 CFR 4.7).

Your log: what to write each time

  1. DateExample: 10/12
  2. TimeExample: 7 pm
  3. Good day or flare-up day?Example: Flare-up day
  4. Body part and side (R/L)Example: Right ankle
  5. MotionExample: Pull toes up
  6. Degrees where pain STARTSExample: 5
  7. Degrees where you had to STOPExample: 10
  8. After 3 tries: degrees where you stopExample: 8
  9. Pain 0-10Example: 7
  10. Medicine taken today (what and when)Example: Ibuprofen 8 am
  11. Who measuredExample: Spouse
  12. Notes (clicking, giving way, swelling)Example: Hurt more after the 3rd try

Write it down (one line per try):

Measure on a normal day and again on a bad day. Do it 2 or 3 times over a few weeks. Bring the sheet to the exam.

Tap Print this page to get a blank log sheet and your exam-day checklist on paper.

Printable paper protractor

01801516530150451356012075105909010575120601354515030165151800Center: push a brad through this dot
  • Print at 100% scale; check the 90° line with a square corner (like the corner of a sheet of paper).
  • Glue it to stiff paper or a cereal box. Push a brad through the center dot.
  • Tape two paper strips or straws to the brad so they swing. One stays on the body part that doesn't move. The other follows the moving part.
  • The top numbers count from the left. The small numbers count from the right. Use whichever side starts at 0.

This is only to help you understand. The VA examiner measures and the VA decides.

Exam-day checklist

Tick each one off. Nothing you tick is saved or sent anywhere.

Tell the examiner

Flare-ups

A flare-up is a time when your joint gets much worse for a while. The examiner must ask about your flare-ups and estimate, in degrees, how much motion you lose during them, even if your exam is on a good day (Sharp v. Shulkin, 2017). They can only skip this if they explain why after getting your information. Be ready to say: how often (for example, 2 times a week), how long each lasts (for example, 1 to 2 days), what triggers it, and exactly what you cannot do (for example, 'I can't lift my arm to comb my hair'). If you measured at home on a flare-up day, show that number.

Repeated use

The examiner will have you do each motion at least 3 times and then measure again. Tell them if pain, weakness, tiredness, or poor control gets worse with each try. The form also asks about repeated use over time, like at the end of a workday. Pain alone does not raise a rating; pain that actually limits how far, how strong, or how long you can move does (Mitchell v. Shinseki, 2011; DeLuca v. Brown, 1995; 38 CFR 4.40 and 4.45).

Honest exam rules

  • Move each joint until pain starts. Say 'pain starts here' out loud. Stop when pain or stiffness stops you. Do not push through sharp pain to look tough. Do not stop before pain or stiffness really stops you, either. The examiner writes down both points.
  • Give your real, full effort on strength tests. The goal is an exam that shows how you truly are.
  • Describe a typical day AND your worst days. Bad days count, but say they are bad days and how often they happen.
  • Take your medicine the way you normally do. Do not skip it, and do not take extra just for the exam. Tell the examiner what you took and when, and how you are when it wears off. (Court decisions Jones v. Shinseki (2012) and Ingram v. Collins (2025) say VA should not lower a joint rating because medicine helps, when the rating rules do not mention medicine. VA tried to change this by rule in February 2026 and took the change back on February 27, 2026.)
  • Wear or bring any brace, cane, crutches, or walker you normally use. Bring the prescription or a record showing a provider ordered it.
  • Bring a one-page list: your diagnoses, surgeries, treatments tried, medicines, how often you have flare-ups, your home measurement log, and what you can no longer do at work and at home.
  • If you do not know or do not remember, say so. Do not guess.
  • Fraud warning: knowingly giving VA false information is a federal crime (18 U.S.C. 1001) and can cost you all VA benefits (38 U.S.C. 6103). Honest, complete reporting is all you need.

Common mistakes

  • Pushing through pain so the examiner only writes down your end point. Painful motion is a key factor, and the exam should record where pain starts.

    Where this comes from: 38 CFR 4.59; Burton v. Shinseki, 25 Vet. App. 1 (2011); Mitchell v. Shinseki, 25 Vet. App. 32 (2011)

  • Saying 'I'm fine' or only describing a good day. Flare-ups that are not described cannot be estimated.

    Where this comes from: Sharp v. Shulkin, 29 Vet. App. 26 (2017); DBQ flare-up section

  • An exam that skipped passive motion, weight-bearing testing, or the opposite joint. That exam may be inadequate; you or your representative can point this out.

    Where this comes from: Correia v. McDonald, 28 Vet. App. 158 (2016)

  • Not asking for at least the minimum rating when the joint is actually painful, unstable, or out of line from an old injury.

    Where this comes from: 38 CFR 4.59; Petitti v. McDonald, 27 Vet. App. 415 (2015)

  • Relying on old guidance that 'moderate' and 'marked' are vague. Since Feb. 7, 2021, they have exact degree cut-offs (under 15/30 = moderate; under 5/10 = marked).

    Where this comes from: 38 CFR 4.71a DC 5271 (85 FR 76453)

Questions to ask together

A spouse, grown child or friend can read these out loud. Talk about each one before the exam, so nothing gets left out.

  1. Can you walk on grass, gravel, or a slope without your ankle rolling?
  2. Can you stand on your toes on that foot?
  3. Can you go down stairs normally, one foot per step?
  4. Does your ankle swell by the end of the day?
  5. How long can you stand before you have to sit?

Sources

Checked against VA's rules on October 30, 2026.

Helping The Brave doesn't file or prepare claims. This guide is free education, not medical or legal advice. The VA examiner measures and VA decides your rating.