Reference: 38 CFR 4.97

Sources & Related Guides

What is the VA rating for Mycotic Lung Disease?

Review mycotic lung disease guidance covering the shared symptom-based General Rating Formula for all 6 assigned diagnostic codes (DC 6834-6839: histoplasmosis of lung, coccidioidomycosis, blastomycosis, cryptococcosis, aspergillosis, and mucormycosis), the only respiratory formula in RatingScope's library with an explicit 0 percent tier.

Condition Overview & Clinical Scope

VA rates 6 distinct fungal lung diagnoses (histoplasmosis of lung, coccidioidomycosis, blastomycosis, cryptococcosis, aspergillosis, and mucormycosis) under one textually identical, symptom-based 4-tier General Rating Formula for Mycotic Lung Disease -- persistent fever/weight loss/night sweats/massive hemoptysis at 100 percent, suppressive therapy with minimal symptoms at 50 percent, minimal symptoms alone at 30 percent, and healed/inactive/asymptomatic at 0 percent. Unlike every other respiratory formula in this repository, this one is clinical-symptom-based rather than pulmonary-function-test-based, and it is the only one with an explicit 0 percent row.

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Explore Mycotic Lung Disease Criteria & Tools

Start AssessmentAnswer condition-scoped questions using documented findings from your records or exam notes.ContinuePercentage GuideSee the published percentage tiers and what changes between them.ContinueSecondary ConditionsSee conditions commonly connected to this one in VA claims.Continue

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Common Questions & FAQs

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What are you trying to understand about mycotic lung disease?

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Overview

About this condition

VA rates 6 distinct fungal lung diagnoses (histoplasmosis of lung, coccidioidomycosis, blastomycosis, cryptococcosis, aspergillosis, and mucormycosis) under one textually identical, symptom-based 4-tier General Rating Formula for Mycotic Lung Disease -- persistent fever/weight loss/night sweats/massive hemoptysis at 100 percent, suppressive therapy with minimal symptoms at 50 percent, minimal symptoms alone at 30 percent, and healed/inactive/asymptomatic at 0 percent. Unlike every other respiratory formula in this repository, this one is clinical-symptom-based rather than pulmonary-function-test-based, and it is the only one with an explicit 0 percent row.

Regulatory authority: 38 CFR 4.97, Diagnostic Codes 6834, 6835, 6836, 6837, 6838, 6839

This hub explains the published DC 6834-6839 schedule and common record language. It does not diagnose a condition, determine service connection, infer undocumented findings, estimate an outcome, or replace medical care or accredited representation. IMPORTANT DISCLOSURES: (1) The formula's own Note addresses Coccidioidomycosis's incubation period and delayed-dissemination timeline as it bears on service-connection determinations -- this is an evidentiary consideration for establishing service connection, not a rating-percentage criterion, and is disclosed only, not automated. (2) Section 4.96(a)'s predominant-disability-picture rule (diagnostic codes 6600-6817 and 6822-6847 cannot be combined with each other via section 4.25; a single predominant code is chosen instead, possibly elevated one step) is not automated here -- disclosed, not silently applied, the same disclosure already used for Trachea/Bronchi, Restrictive Lung Disease, and Interstitial Lung Disease. (3) A pending VA rulemaking (RIN 2900-AQ72) proposes renaming this formula's subheading only ('Mycotic Lung Disease' to 'Mycotic Lung Diseases') with VA's own text stating no substantive criteria changes are proposed; not yet finalized, RatingScope does not assume how or whether it will apply.

Percentage Guides

Understanding Your Percentage

Select a pathway to see what the published criteria ask about, what records may clarify it, and what should not be assumed.

100%

Highest listed pathway

Chronic pulmonary mycosis with persistent fever, weight loss, night sweats, or massive hemoptysis.

What separates the next level: The 50% tier requires suppressive therapy with only minimal symptoms, a materially less severe clinical picture than any of this tier's four findings.

Review CFR criteria, examples, and evidence
Official CFR language
Chronic pulmonary mycosis with persistent fever, weight loss, night sweats, or massive hemoptysis.
Qualification explanation
Any single one of the four listed severe findings independently reaches this tier -- persistent fever alone, for example, is just as sufficient as massive hemoptysis.
Examples
Records document persistent fever and significant unintended weight loss attributed to active coccidioidomycosis.
Medical evidence
Respiratory Conditions DBQ; Treatment records documenting fever, weight loss, night sweats, or hemoptysis
Functional impact examples
Active, symptomatic chronic pulmonary mycosis with systemic symptoms.
Common misconceptions
This exact same 100 percent tier text applies identically across all 6 diagnosis labels in this hub -- the diagnosis label does not change the criteria.
Related topics
shared-mycotic-ladder
Source context
38 CFR 4.97; 6834-6839; Current DC 6834-6839 educational pathway. A pending rulemaking (RIN 2900-AQ72) proposes renaming this formula's subheading only; VA's own text states no substantive criteria changes are proposed.

50%

Next: 100%

Chronic pulmonary mycosis requiring suppressive therapy, with no more than minimal symptoms such as occasional minor hemoptysis or a productive cough.

What separates the next level: The 30% tier below has the same minimal-symptom description but without the suppressive-therapy requirement. The 100% tier above requires persistent fever, weight loss, night sweats, or massive hemoptysis.

Review CFR criteria, examples, and evidence
Official CFR language
Chronic pulmonary mycosis requiring suppressive therapy with no more than minimal symptoms such as occasional minor hemoptysis or productive cough.
Qualification explanation
This tier requires BOTH that suppressive therapy is required AND that symptoms stay minimal -- it is not reached by minimal symptoms alone without the treatment requirement.
Examples
Records document ongoing antifungal suppressive therapy with only occasional minor hemoptysis.
Medical evidence
Respiratory Conditions DBQ; Treatment records documenting suppressive antifungal therapy
Functional impact examples
Chronic pulmonary mycosis controlled only with ongoing suppressive treatment.
Common misconceptions
Minimal symptoms alone are not enough for this tier -- suppressive therapy must also be documented as required, or the 30 percent tier applies instead.
Related topics
shared-mycotic-ladder
Source context
38 CFR 4.97; 6834-6839; Current DC 6834-6839 educational pathway.

30%

Next: 50%

Chronic pulmonary mycosis with minimal symptoms such as occasional minor hemoptysis or a productive cough, without a documented suppressive-therapy requirement.

What separates the next level: The 50% tier requires the identical minimal-symptom picture PLUS a documented suppressive-therapy requirement. The 0% tier below requires the disease to be healed and inactive, with no symptoms at all.

Review CFR criteria, examples, and evidence
Official CFR language
Chronic pulmonary mycosis with minimal symptoms such as occasional minor hemoptysis or productive cough.
Qualification explanation
The same minimal-symptom description as the 50% tier, but without suppressive therapy being required.
Examples
Records document occasional minor hemoptysis with no suppressive therapy currently required.
Medical evidence
Respiratory Conditions DBQ; Treatment records
Functional impact examples
Chronic pulmonary mycosis with mild, intermittent symptoms.
Common misconceptions
This tier and the 50 percent tier share identical symptom language -- the suppressive-therapy requirement is the only distinguishing fact between them.
Related topics
shared-mycotic-ladder
Source context
38 CFR 4.97; 6834-6839; Current DC 6834-6839 educational pathway.

0%

Next: 30%

Healed and inactive mycotic lesions, asymptomatic.

What separates the next level: The 30% tier above requires at least minimal ongoing symptoms -- this tier requires the lesions to be both healed/inactive and fully asymptomatic.

Review CFR criteria, examples, and evidence
Official CFR language
Healed and inactive mycotic lesions, asymptomatic.
Qualification explanation
The formula's own lowest named tier -- unlike Trachea/Bronchi, Restrictive Lung Disease, or Interstitial Lung Disease, this is the only respiratory formula in this repository with an explicit 0 percent row rather than an unnamed no-qualifying-criterion fallback.
Examples
Records document prior histoplasmosis with current imaging showing healed, inactive lesions and no symptoms.
Medical evidence
Respiratory Conditions DBQ; Imaging records documenting lesion activity status
Functional impact examples
No current functional impact -- disease process is resolved.
Common misconceptions
This is a real, explicit 0 percent row in the regulation, not an absence-of-criteria default -- it still requires an affirmative finding (healed, inactive, asymptomatic), not merely a lack of documentation.
Related topics
shared-mycotic-ladder
Source context
38 CFR 4.97; 6834-6839; Current DC 6834-6839 educational pathway.

Learn

Understand the details behind the criteria

Use these short guides to connect published terms with the records and observations that may clarify them.

Why 6 diagnostic codes share one table

DC 6834 (histoplasmosis of lung), 6835 (coccidioidomycosis), 6836 (blastomycosis), 6837 (cryptococcosis), 6838 (aspergillosis), and 6839 (mucormycosis) all use the textually identical 4-tier General Rating Formula for Mycotic Lung Disease.

  • The 100/50/30/0 percent tier language is word-for-word identical across all 6 labels -- RatingScope's evaluator is written once and reused via label dispatch, never sextupled.
  • This does not mean the underlying fungal infections are medically interchangeable -- it means VA rates their long-term severity the same way.
  • Unlike Trachea/Bronchi, Restrictive Lung Disease, or Interstitial Lung Disease, this formula is symptom-based (fever, weight loss, night sweats, hemoptysis, suppressive therapy) rather than pulmonary-function-test-based, and it is the only respiratory formula in this repository with a real 0 percent row.
  • A pending rulemaking (RIN 2900-AQ72) is confirmed by VA's own text to propose no substantive criteria change to this formula at all -- only a subheading pluralization ('Mycotic Lung Disease' to 'Mycotic Lung Diseases').

Records to review: Respiratory Conditions DBQ; treatment records.

The Coccidioidomycosis service-connection note

The formula carries one Note specific to coccidioidomycosis, addressing its incubation period and delayed-dissemination timeline as a factor in establishing service connection -- not a rating-percentage criterion.

  • The Note explains that coccidioidomycosis has an incubation period of up to 21 days, with the disseminated phase ordinarily appearing within six months of the primary phase, but that dissemination can be delayed years and go unrecognized.
  • It directs that when service connection is being considered without a service record of the disease, service in the southwestern United States (where the disease is endemic) and the absence of prolonged residence there before or after service become the deciding factors.
  • This is an evidentiary consideration for service-connection determinations (a Part 3 concept), not a Part 4 rating-percentage criterion -- disclosed here, never modeled as part of the rating-tier evaluator.

Records to review: Service records documenting duty locations; Treatment records documenting date of first diagnosis.

The section 4.96(a) combination rule (not yet automated)

38 CFR 4.96(a) states that ratings under diagnostic codes 6600 through 6817 and 6822 through 6847 will not be combined with each other; a single rating is assigned under whichever code reflects the predominant disability, with possible elevation to the next higher tier. RatingScope does not automate this rule.

  • This is the exact same disclosure already established for Trachea/Bronchi, Restrictive Lung Disease, and Interstitial Lung Disease -- reused verbatim here, not rewritten, since section 4.96(a) explicitly names DC 6834-6839 among the covered range.
  • If a veteran has more than one respiratory diagnosis documented at once, this rule determines which single code is used, not RatingScope.
  • A newly added Note (2) under this same formula (per the pending RIN 2900-AQ72 proposal) would explicitly state this range cannot combine with other section 4.97 ratings except sleep apnea (DC 6847) -- disclosed as a pending-rule detail, not yet current law.

Records to review: Treatment records documenting each diagnosis; clinician assessment of predominant disability.

Evidence

Evidence that may clarify the published criteria

Treatment records documenting fever, weight loss, night sweats, hemoptysis, or suppressive therapy

The primary basis for distinguishing all four tiers of the shared symptom-based ladder.

A diagnosis alone does not establish a percentage without the specific documented symptom and treatment findings.

Imaging records documenting lesion activity status

Needed to establish the 0 percent tier's healed/inactive finding.

Only relevant when asymptomatic, healed disease is being documented.

Respiratory Conditions Disability Benefits Questionnaire

The standardized VA exam form covering all 6 mycotic lung disease diagnoses, among other respiratory conditions.

A DBQ is one common evidence source, not the only way to document these findings.

Official VA Forms & DBQs

Downloadable DBQs & Supporting Claim Forms

Take the public DBQ to your private physician or review it prior to your C&P examination.

Terminology

Plain-English terms

Suppressive therapy

Medication a person keeps taking to keep a fungal lung infection from getting worse.

Required, together with minimal symptoms, to reach the 50 percent tier rather than the 30 percent tier.

Treatment records documenting suppressive antifungal therapy; shared-mycotic-ladder

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Hemoptysis

Coughing up blood.

"Massive hemoptysis" is one of four independent findings reaching the 100 percent tier; "occasional minor hemoptysis" is part of the minimal-symptom description shared by the 50 and 30 percent tiers.

Treatment records; shared-mycotic-ladder

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TDIU

Even if the schedular rating for Mycotic Lung Disease does not reach 100 percent, TDIU may still provide a pathway to compensation at the 100 percent rate, based on unemployability from this and/or other service-connected disabilities combined.

A lower schedular percentage does not by itself foreclose TDIU eligibility -- this hub computes only the schedular percentage for this specific condition and does not determine TDIU eligibility.

Employment history; vocational impact documentation; occupational impairment

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Common Questions

Questions veterans commonly ask

How does VA rate mycotic lung disease?

All 6 diagnostic codes in this hub (DC 6834-6839) share a textually identical, symptom-based 4-tier General Rating Formula (100/50/30/0 percent), based on the presence of severe systemic symptoms, a suppressive-therapy requirement combined with minimal symptoms, minimal symptoms alone, or healed and inactive disease.

Is there a 0 percent rating?

Yes -- this is the only respiratory formula in RatingScope's current library with an explicit 0 percent row, requiring healed and inactive lesions with no symptoms at all.

What is the Coccidioidomycosis note about?

It addresses the disease's incubation and delayed-dissemination timeline as a factor VA considers when establishing service connection without a service record of the disease -- it is not a rating-percentage criterion, and RatingScope discloses it without automating it.

Can this combine with another respiratory rating?

Section 4.96(a) states that ratings under this diagnostic code range cannot be combined with other respiratory diagnoses; a single predominant-disability code is chosen instead, possibly elevated one step. RatingScope discloses this rule but does not automate it.

If my schedular rating for Mycotic Lung Disease is below 100%, can I still be compensated at the 100% rate?

Possibly, through TDIU (Total Disability rating based on Individual Unemployability, 38 CFR 4.16) -- a separate pathway to 100 percent compensation based on unemployability, from this and/or other service-connected disabilities combined, independent of whether the schedular rating itself reaches 100 percent. This hub computes only the schedular percentage and does not determine TDIU eligibility.

What separates the 100% rating from adjacent levels?

The 50% tier requires suppressive therapy with only minimal symptoms, a materially less severe clinical picture than any of this tier's four findings.

What separates the 50% rating from adjacent levels?

The 30% tier below has the same minimal-symptom description but without the suppressive-therapy requirement. The 100% tier above requires persistent fever, weight loss, night sweats, or massive hemoptysis.

What separates the 30% rating from adjacent levels?

The 50% tier requires the identical minimal-symptom picture PLUS a documented suppressive-therapy requirement. The 0% tier below requires the disease to be healed and inactive, with no symptoms at all.

What separates the 0% rating from adjacent levels?

The 30% tier above requires at least minimal ongoing symptoms -- this tier requires the lesions to be both healed/inactive and fully asymptomatic.

Related Conditions

Continue learning through connected topics

Interstitial Lung Disease

Shares section 4.96(a)'s non-combination rule -- both DC ranges are explicitly named together in that section.

Ready when you are

Compare documented mycotic lung disease findings

Use the diagnosis, symptom-severity, and treatment-intensity language already documented in your records. Do not upload records or enter Social Security numbers, claim numbers, full dates of birth, or other sensitive identifiers. RatingScope does not infer missing findings.

Informational guidance only. RatingScope does not predict, decide, or guarantee VA outcomes.

Compare my mycotic lung disease records

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Continue Understanding

External source/reference

VA Respiratory Conditions DBQ

Official VA form, updated 2024-08-27; Part F maps closely to all six diagnoses in this hub.

Open VA Respiratory Conditions DBQ

Secondary conditions

Conditions commonly connected to Mycotic Lung Disease

No commonly documented secondary connections are tracked for Mycotic Lung Disease yet.

Educational Guides & Evidence Resources

In-depth analysis of DBQ forms, medical evidence thresholds, and rating schedules for Mycotic Lung Disease.

What Is the PACT Act? Presumptive Conditions and Your VA Rating

The PACT Act expanded presumptive service connection for toxic exposures. Learn how presumptions work and how conditions are rated.

Keep going

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