Getting Disability for Soft Tissue Injuries or Burns

Soft tissue injuries and burns are often the result of accidents that damage the skin, muscles, tendons, or ligaments (connections between your bones). Many soft tissue injuries and burns heal in a relatively short amount of time. But scar tissue can form across joints and skin that cause lasting restrictions in the use of your hands, arms, or legs. If these restrictions keep you from working full-time for at least one year, you may qualify for Social Security disability benefits.

Disabling Types of Soft Tissue Injuries

Muscle strains and sprains are the most frequent soft tissue injuries. Whiplash, for example, is a common soft tissue injury diagnosed in people who've been in car accidents. Other soft tissue injuries include cuts, contusions, tendinitis, and bursitis.

Most soft tissue injuries heal within a year, so people with these types of injuries don't usually apply for benefits from the Social Security Administration (SSA), which requires medical conditions to last 12 months before they're considered disabling. But the SSA can award benefits to those who've had multiple surgeries to treat soft tissue or related injuries, such as:

• complete rupture of a hamstring requiring surgical reattachment
• nerve damage (such as sciatica) sustained during a soft tissue injury
• extensive lacerations (sharp cuts through the skin) and avulsions (deep cuts that remove all the skin layers) from car accidents
• third-degree abrasions ("road rash") from motorcycle or bicycle accidents, or
• rhabdomyolysis (rapid breakdown of skeletal issue) caused by crush injuries or extreme muscle strain.

Any of these soft tissue injuries can require surgery. Normally, surgical intervention will proceed without incident, but there is always a risk—however small—of complications. Examples of surgical complications that can lengthen the recovery period past the 12-month durational requirement needed to receive disability benefits include wound infections, sepsis, and deep vein thrombosis.

When Complications From Burns Can Be Disabling

Doctors use a degree scale to describe how severe and extensive burns can be. The higher the degree, the more damage is caused by the burn. Higher degree burns are more likely to result in complications that may qualify for disability benefits.

First-Degree Burns

First-degree burns, also called "superficial" burns, only affect the outer layer of skin (the epidermis). Many people have experienced first-degree burns after accidentally bumping into a hot stove, spilling boiling water, or staying out too long in the sun. While first-degree burns are red and can be painful to the touch, they don't blister or typically cause any complications.

Second-Degree Burns

Second-degree burns, also called "partial thickness" burns, affect both the epidermis and the layer of skin beneath it (the dermis). Second-degree burns are red, swollen, and painful. They are often accompanied by blisters that might ooze clear fluid (pus). Deep second-degree burns may result in the formation of scar tissue that can shrink as it heals, restricting movement.

Third-Degree Burns

Third-degree burns, also called "full thickness" burns, are the most severe type of burn. Third-degree burns involve all the layers of skin and may destroy the fat and muscle tissue under the skin. Burned areas may become leathery and discolored. Despite their severeness, third-degree burns might not be painful at all as the nerves that send pain signals to the brain may be damaged.

Third-degree burns are the most likely to involve extensive complications that the SSA will consider disabling. Scar tissue may form that greatly restricts joint movement ("joint contracture"). Decreased blood flow from the burn site can cause kidney failure. Thick, crusty skin (eschar) that becomes inelastic can cut off blood flow to other areas of the body, harming them. Finally, sepsis may result if an infection at the burn site spreads into the bloodstream.

Qualifying for Disability Benefits Due to Soft Tissue Injuries or Burns

In order to qualify for disability benefits—whether you're applying for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) or Supplemental Security Income (SSI)—you need to show either that you meet the requirements of a medical listing from Social Security's "Blue Book" or prove that you're unable to do any work because of the functional limitations caused by your injuries.

Meeting a Listing for Soft Tissue Injuries or Burns

The Blue Book lists about 100 medical conditions that the SSA considers especially severe. Each listing has a set of requirements that need to be documented in your medical records in order for the SSA to find you disabled. The Blue Book contains two listings that address soft tissue injuries and burns—listing 1.21 for soft tissue injuries or burns that are still being treated with surgery, and listing 8.08 for burns that are no longer being surgically treated.

You can meet the requirements of listing 1.21 if you have soft tissue injuries or burns to any body part and you have medical documentation of all three of the following criteria:

• you're undergoing continuing surgical management—including the actual surgery (or surgeries), post-surgical procedures, complications, infections, or related treatments—with the goal of saving, reconstructing, or replacing the affected body part
• the surgical management has been, or is expected to be, ongoing for a continuous period of 12 months, and
• you haven't yet achieved "maximum benefit from therapy," defined as a six month period after your last surgical period where there have been no significant changes or your doctor doesn't expect any further improvement.

If you have burns that are no longer being treated (or your doctor has found that you've attained maximum therapeutic benefit from surgery) but you're still significantly limited due to chronic skin lesions or contractures, you can meet listing 8.08 with evidence of one of the following:

• you're unable to independently use both upper extremities (arms and hands) to do activities involving fine and gross motor skills such as typing
• you're unable to independently use one upper extremity for fine and gross motor skills, and the other extremity is occupied with handling an assistive device such as a cane
• you're unable to independently get up from a seated position and remain standing, or
• you're unable to independently remain upright while standing or walking.

For example, if you have burns on the palms of both hands that make it almost impossible to pick up a pen, burns on the soles of both your feet (or in your groin area) that make it painful to walk, or burns that interfere with your knee joints and require you to use a cane to maintain balance, you're likely to meet listing 8.08.

Keep in mind that it's difficult to qualify for disability by meeting (or equaling) a listing. You'll need to have extensive medical evidence of significant functional limitations to get benefits in this manner. But the SSA can still find you disabled even if you don't meet a listing provided your limitations prevent you from doing any full-time job.

Getting Disability for Functional Limitations That Restrict Work

The process by which Social Security determines whether you're able to work is called assessing your residual functional capacity (RFC). Your RFC is a set of restrictions, physical and mental, that represents the most you're capable of doing in a work environment. Many disability applicants who have had a long recovery from soft tissue injuries or burns often have limited use of affected joints or muscles, which can be reflected in their RFC in the following ways:

• weight restrictions on lifting, pulling, or carrying items due to decreased strength
• time restrictions on walking, standing, or sitting due to pain from lesions
• movement restrictions on bending, twisting, or kneeling due to muscle weakness
• manipulative restrictions on typing or handing small objects due to scarring
• sensory restrictions on touching or feeling due to loss of nerves, and
• restrictions on attendance due to ongoing medical attention from complications.

Social Security reviews your medical records and activities of daily living to decide which limitations to include in your RFC. The agency then compares your current RFC to the duties of your past relevant work to see if you could still perform those jobs today. If not, Social Security will then see if you can do any other work despite your limitations. The agency will find you disabled if there aren't any full-time jobs in the national economy that you can perform.

For people younger than 50, this generally means needing to show that you can't do the simplest, sit-down work. But applicants 50 years of age or older can get disability benefits even if they're physically able to do less demanding jobs using a special set of rules known as the medical-vocational grid. Under the grid rules, you can qualify for SSDI or SSI if you can't do your past jobs and you don't have transferable skills to another line of work.

Social Security is required to consider how your combined impairments affect your ability to work—not just the limitations you have from soft tissue injuries or burns—so make sure to let the agency know about any other medical conditions you're getting treatment for. Not accounting for all limitations in your RFC is one of the most common reasons why a disability application is denied (and a good basis on which to appeal).

Medical Evidence Required for Soft Tissue Injuries or Burns

Social Security understands that soft tissue injuries and burns often improve over time, so the agency wants to see evidence of ongoing medical treatment to see whether you're getting better. This means reviewing your doctor's notes for physical examinations that demonstrate your range of motion, reflexes, or response to sensory input. Medical imaging, such as X-rays or MRIs, can help document the severity of your injuries.

If you have skin lesions, your records should contain evidence that shows the extent of your lesions, how often they flare up, pain or other symptoms caused by the lesions, as well as any side effects from treatment you've received. Asking your doctor to write a letter containing their opinion about how your symptoms limit your functioning can greatly strengthen your case, provided the opinion is consistent with the medical record as a whole.

VA Benefits for Burns and Soft Tissue Injuries

Veterans who have burns or soft tissue injuries as a result of their time in service may qualify for disability compensation from the VA. Unlike the SSA, the VA uses a percentage ratings system to help determine how much you'll receive in disability benefits. The higher your disability is rated, the greater your monthly benefit will be. For example, in 2025, an individual veteran with a 10% disability rating will receive $175.51 monthly from the VA, but if the same veteran had a 60% rating, they would be entitled to $1,395.93 every month.

According to the VA Schedule of Rating Disabilities, burn scars are evaluated under diagnostic codes 7800 (for injuries to the head, face, and neck), 7801 (for injuries to other parts of the body with associated soft tissue damage), and 7802 (for large scars without soft tissue damage).

If your burns fall under diagnostic code 7800, then depending on the size, location, and extent of your scars, you may be entitled to a disability rating of 10%, 30%, 50%, or 80%. For diagnostic code 7801, you may qualify for a VA disability rating of 10%, 20%, 30%, or 40%, while injuries falling under code 7802 can only be rated at 10%.

Social Security Disability Benefit Amounts

Social Security doesn't pay benefits according to a disability rating or based on what medical condition you have. Instead, your monthly benefit will depend on whether you qualify for SSDI or SSI. SSDI benefits are calculated based on the work credits you've earned, while SSI is a fixed rate (adjusted yearly) available to people with limited income and assets.

For 2025, the maximum monthly amount you can receive in SSDI is $4,018, although the average amount is much less, at $1,580. SSI benefits are $967 per month minus any earned income you have for that month.

How to Apply for SSDI, SSI, or VA Benefits

An easy way to start your Social Security disability application is to file online. You don't have to finish the application all at once. Just make sure that you keep track of the application number given to you when you start the application, so you can access it again if you need to come back to it.

You can also apply for SSDI or SSI over the phone by calling 800-772-1213 (TTY 800-325-0778) from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday. If you'd prefer to file in person, you can visit your local Social Security field office. For more information about the application process, see our article on filing for Social Security disability benefits.

Veterans can apply for benefits by submitting VA Form 21-526, Application for Disability Compensation and Related Compensation Benefits. The VA encourages veterans to submit this form electronically, but you can also print it out and bring it with you to your regional VA field office. Learn more about how to apply in our article on filing for veterans' disability benefits.

If you'd like assistance with your application, you can work with an experienced disability lawyer who can help you complete the forms and make sure you have the proper medical evidence. Because most disability applications are denied the first time, it's a smart idea to get professional advice on how you can increase your odds (and work with you to appeal, if needed). Most attorneys offer free consultations, so it doesn't hurt to ask around to find a representative who's a good fit for your needs.