Scars that are painful to touch or prone to reopening or breaking down.
Medical records that document the number of distinct unstable or painful scars are central to this rating. Records showing repeated breakdown of skin over a scar — such as clinic notes describing open areas, wounds, or recurring ulceration — support a finding of instability under the regulation's definition. Records or examination findings that describe a scar as tender or painful on palpation, or that note pain reported during physical exam, support a painful-scar finding.
If any scar is both unstable and painful, records that document both characteristics for the same scar are needed to support the additional 10% add-on.
Your own statements, and statements from people who observe your daily life, can describe how often skin breaks down over a scar and how pain from a scar affects your activities. A VA or private medical examination that counts each qualifying scar and records its characteristics ties all of this together and directly addresses the criteria the rating is based on.
Conditions that are often caused or made worse by this one. If you have any of these, they may be claimable as secondary service connection.
