VA BENEFITS REFERENCE
DC 7913: Diabetes Mellitus
Read VA diagnostic code 7913 for Diabetes mellitus: published criteria, regulatory notes, related codes and official sources checked October 25, 2026.
Published criteria from 38 CFR 4.119, current through 2026-10-22. Historical decisions may require a different version. This reference does not diagnose a condition or determine an evaluation.
The Endocrine System · All Diagnostic Codes
DC 7913: Diabetes Mellitus
Diagnostic code 7913 addresses Diabetes mellitus. Read its specific instructions together with any shared formula, notes and linked provisions. These criteria describe evaluation after the applicable entitlement requirements are met; this reference does not diagnose a condition or determine a claim.
| Rating | |
|---|---|
| 7913 Diabetes mellitus: | |
| Requiring more than one daily injection of insulin, restricted diet, and regulation of activities (avoidance of strenuous occupational and recreational activities) with episodes of ketoacidosis or hypoglycemic reactions requiring at least three hospitalizations per year or weekly visits to a diabetic care provider, plus either progressive loss of weight and strength or complications that would be compensable if separately evaluated | 100 |
| Requiring one or more daily injection of insulin, restricted diet, and regulation of activities with episodes of ketoacidosis or hypoglycemic reactions requiring one or two hospitalizations per year or twice a month visits to a diabetic care provider, plus complications that would not be compensable if separately evaluated | 60 |
| Requiring one or more daily injection of insulin, restricted diet, and regulation of activities | 40 |
| Requiring one or more daily injection of insulin and restricted diet, or; oral hypoglycemic agent and restricted diet | 20 |
| Manageable by restricted diet only | 10 |
| Note (1): Evaluate compensable complications of diabetes separately unless they are part of the criteria used to support a 100-percent evaluation. Noncompensable complications are considered part of the diabetic process under DC 7913. | |
| Note (2): When diabetes mellitus has been conclusively diagnosed, do not request a glucose tolerance test solely for rating purposes. |
What The Criteria Measure
- Does the decision identify diagnostic code 7913, and does the medical record describe the condition named by this code?
- Do dated records describe the frequency and duration specified by this particular provision, using its definitions?
- Do records describe the functional or work effects addressed by the criteria without assuming an outcome?
- Have the code-specific notes and cross-references been read before comparing any listed evaluation?
Related Public DBQs
Editorial subject matches, not official VA code-to-form assignments. Read the form scope and clinician instructions.
Shared Rules And Regulatory Context
Context provisions do not create an additional evaluation automatically assigned to every condition.
Related Guides
Official Sources
Last verified 2026-10-25. Source publication or legal effective dates are shown separately where available.
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