YOUR CONDITION, EXPLAINED
Tuberculous Peritonitis (Abdominal Tuberculosis) VA disability rating & claim guide
The VA rates Tuberculous Peritonitis (Abdominal Tuberculosis) under diagnostic code 7331, in 38 CFR § 4.114 (digestive system), and the schedule provides four evaluation levels for it: 100%, 50%, 30% and 0%.
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A CLEARER PATH FORWARD
Make sense of your next step.
01Understand the rating02Know what to gather03Plan your preparationTHE ESSENTIALS
How the VA rates Tuberculous Peritonitis (Abdominal Tuberculosis)
Tuberculous peritonitis is tuberculosis infection of the peritoneum, the membrane lining the abdominal cavity. DC 7331 prints a single evaluation: active tuberculous peritonitis is rated 100 percent. The code's title covers the condition "active or inactive", but inactive disease carries no percentage here — the entry reads "Inactive: See §§ 4.88b and 4.89", sending that part of the evaluation outside DC 7331.
There is no graded ladder under DC 7331. The schedule prints one criteria row, "Active", at 100 percent, and one instruction beneath it: "Inactive: See §§ 4.88b and 4.89." The evaluation under this code therefore turns on a single question the record has to answer — whether the tuberculous peritonitis is active — and once it is inactive the schedule refers the evaluation to those sections rather than assigning a lower step here. The code is also specific about both cause and site: peritonitis that is tuberculous, of the peritoneum. Peritoneal adhesions due to surgery, trauma, disease, or infection are a separate code, DC 7301, with criteria of its own.
- Diagnostic code
- 7331
- Rating schedule
- 38 CFR § 4.114
- Schedule levels
- 100%, 50%, 30% and 0%
How does the VA choose a rating level?
Which level applies is set by the criteria the evidence meets, not by the diagnosis. Where there is a question as to which of two evaluations applies, 38 CFR § 4.7 assigns the higher one if the disability picture more nearly approximates the criteria required for that rating.
This guide describes one of those levels in detail; for 50%, 30% and 0%, read the criteria in 38 CFR § 4.114.
EXPLORE THE PERCENTAGES
Tuberculous Peritonitis (Abdominal Tuberculosis) VA rating criteria (DC 7331)
This condition has one published rating level. Read the criteria, then explore the details and monthly pay.
These are published rating criteria. Selecting a level does not predict your VA decision.
BUILD YOUR EVIDENCE, ONE PIECE AT A TIME
Evidence for your Tuberculous Peritonitis (Abdominal Tuberculosis) claim
A long list feels easier when you have a place to start. Use this checklist to see what you have and what still needs gathering.
Check off what you’ve gathered. Progress stays on this page until you leave or refresh.
THE EXAM FORM
Which DBQ is used for Tuberculous Peritonitis (Abdominal Tuberculosis)?
VA publishes its questionnaires by body system; find the one for this condition on VA's list.
Source: VA: Public Disability Benefits Questionnaires (DBQs), read September 18, 2026.
SMALL DETAILS. BETTER PREPARATION.
Preparing your Tuberculous Peritonitis (Abdominal Tuberculosis) claim
Start with the practical tips, then explore the common oversights. You don’t need to work through everything at once.
Practical tips for your claim3 tips
- 01
Confirm the record documents tuberculous peritonitis specifically. DC 7331 is "Peritonitis, tuberculous" — peritonitis from another cause is not this code, and adhesions of the peritoneum are DC 7301.
- 02
Keep the laboratory or pathology results that established tuberculosis in the file alongside the imaging, operative, or biopsy findings that placed it in the peritoneum.
- 03
Make sure the record shows whether the disease was active or inactive on each date. The 100 percent evaluation attaches to active disease, and the schedule sends inactive disease to §§ 4.88b and 4.89.
C&P exam pitfalls to keep in mind2 tips
- 01
A record that shows peritonitis without establishing that it is tuberculous, which is what this code is written for.
- 02
No date in the file marking the move from active to inactive disease, when that is the only distinction the code's rows draw.
Common filing mistakes3 tips
- 01
Describing the claim as intestinal tuberculosis. DC 7331 is written for tuberculous peritonitis — the peritoneum is the membrane lining the abdominal cavity, not the intestine itself.
- 02
Expecting a graded ladder. DC 7331 prints one evaluation, 100 percent for active disease, and refers inactive disease to §§ 4.88b and 4.89 instead of assigning a lower step.
- 03
Submitting abdominal findings with no tuberculosis testing behind them, or tuberculosis testing with nothing tying the infection to the peritoneum.
When symptoms may first appear2 tips
- 01
The schedule's own title — "Peritonitis, tuberculous, active or inactive" — treats this as a condition that moves between an active and an inactive state, and DC 7331 assigns a percentage only to the active state.
- 02
Because of that, the date on which the record stops documenting active disease is a turning point in the file rather than an administrative detail.
THE BROADER PICTURE
Tuberculous Peritonitis (Abdominal Tuberculosis) by the numbers
- Veterans service-connected
- ~70 veterans
Vetrify editorial estimates informed by VA published claims data (VBA Annual Benefits Report) and the VA rating schedule, not official VA statistics.
LET’S CLEAR A FEW THINGS UP
Common questions about Tuberculous Peritonitis (Abdominal Tuberculosis)
Is Tuberculous Peritonitis (Abdominal Tuberculosis) a VA-rated disability?
Yes. The VA rates Tuberculous Peritonitis (Abdominal Tuberculosis) under VASRD diagnostic code 7331 (Digestive System). Tuberculous peritonitis is tuberculosis infection of the peritoneum, the membrane lining the abdominal cavity. DC 7331 prints a single evaluation: active tuberculous peritonitis is rated 100 percent. The code's title covers the condition "active or inactive", but inactive disease carries no percentage here — the entry reads "Inactive: See §§ 4.88b and 4.89", sending that part of the evaluation outside DC 7331.
What VA disability rating can I get for Tuberculous Peritonitis (Abdominal Tuberculosis)?
Possible VA ratings for Tuberculous Peritonitis (Abdominal Tuberculosis) are 100%, 50%, 30%, 0%. Examples: 100%: Active tuberculous peritonitis.
What evidence helps prove Tuberculous Peritonitis (Abdominal Tuberculosis) for VA disability?
Strong evidence for a Tuberculous Peritonitis (Abdominal Tuberculosis) claim includes: Laboratory or pathology results establishing tuberculosis; Imaging, operative, or biopsy findings identifying the peritoneum as the site of involvement; Infectious disease treatment records showing the course of therapy and the dates the disease was documented as active.
What mistakes should veterans avoid when claiming Tuberculous Peritonitis (Abdominal Tuberculosis)?
Common pitfalls when filing for Tuberculous Peritonitis (Abdominal Tuberculosis): Describing the claim as intestinal tuberculosis. DC 7331 is written for tuberculous peritonitis — the peritoneum is the membrane lining the abdominal cavity, not the intestine itself; Expecting a graded ladder. DC 7331 prints one evaluation, 100 percent for active disease, and refers inactive disease to §§ 4.88b and 4.89 instead of assigning a lower step; Submitting abdominal findings with no tuberculosis testing behind them, or tuberculosis testing with nothing tying the infection to the peritoneum.
Official sources
- 38 CFR § 4.114, Schedule of ratings, digestive system (Diagnostic Code 7331)
- 38 CFR § 4.7, higher of two evaluations
Criteria in quotation marks are the regulation’s own words; everything else on this page is Vetrify’s summary of it. The eCFR text is authoritative. See how Vetrify derives its numbers.
How these figures are checked: our methodology and the open dataset.
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