WingmanOpen the free toolsWingmanOpen the free toolsIf the VA already service-connected your dental and oral conditions (also called dental, dental condition, dental problems, dental issues), it can cause or worsen other conditions that are ratable on their own. These "secondary" claims are where many veterans leave money on the table. Below is what a service-connected dental and oral conditions commonly leads to, why, and what evidence each one takes.
A secondary claim only works if the primary condition (dental and oral conditions) is already service-connected, and you have a nexus — a doctor's opinion that it is "at least as likely as not" the cause. More on nexus letters →
Dental is the one area where the usual claim logic does not apply, and it is better that you hear it here than after a denial. 38 CFR 3.381(b) says plainly that treatable carious teeth, replaceable missing teeth, dental or alveolar abscesses, and periodontal disease are NOT compensable disabilities. They can still be service connected, but solely to establish eligibility for outpatient dental treatment under 38 CFR 17.161. So for most veterans the honest goal of a dental claim is free VA dental care in the right class, not a monthly payment. That is a real benefit and worth filing for. It is just not a percentage, and any site that implies otherwise is setting you up to be disappointed.
What you'd need: Your entrance and separation dental examinations, service dental records for each tooth, and anything showing combat wounds, service trauma, or former prisoner of war status, because those are the specific findings VBA is asked to decide.
There is a compensable dental path, but it is narrow and it is worth knowing exactly where the line falls. DC 9913 pays for teeth lost due to loss of substance of the body of the maxilla or mandible, and only where the lost masticatory surface cannot be restored by a suitable prosthesis. Losing teeth to decay or gum disease does not qualify. Losing the bone they were anchored in, to trauma, osteomyelitis or osteoradionecrosis, can. If your dental history is jaw injury or jaw disease rather than cavities, this is your code.
What you'd need: Diagnostic imaging showing the bone loss and whether continuity was lost, the service record of the injury or the disease process, oral surgery notes, and a prosthodontic opinion on whether a prosthesis can restore the masticatory surface.
If the event that cost you teeth also damaged the jaw joint, the joint limitation is rated on its own criteria measured in millimeters of opening, and that is a separate finding from the teeth. This is a different code from the dental loss codes, so it does not run into the compensability limits above.
What you'd need: Measured interincisal range of maximum unassisted vertical opening in millimeters, lateral excursion measurements, imaging of the joint, and documentation of dietary restrictions.