Musculoskeletal System and Growth Impairments

• Author: David A. Morton III
• Pages: 23-166

MUSCULOSKELETAL,

GROWTH IMPAIRMENTS

1-1

CHAPTER 1

Musculoskeletal System

and Growth Impairments

Contents

Part I – Adults

§1.00 Musculoskeletal System

§1.01 Category of Impairments, Musculoskeletal

§1.02 Major Dysfunction of a Joint

§1.03 Reconstructive Surgery or Arthrodesis of a Major Weight-Bearing Joint

§1.04 Disorders of the Spine

§1.05 Amputation (due to any cause)

§1.06 Fracture of Femur, Tibia, Pelvis, Tarsals

§1.07 Fracture of an Upper Extremity with Non-Union

§1.08 Soft Tissue Injury

Part II – Children

§100.00 Low Birth Weight and Failure to Thrive

§100.01 Category of Impairments, Low Birth Weight and Failure to Thrive

§100.02-03 (Reserved)

§100.04 Low birth weight in infants from birth to attainment of age 1

§100.05 Failure to thrive in children from birth to attainment of age 3

§101.00 Musculoskeletal System

§101.01 Category of Impairments, Musculoskeletal

§101.02 Major Dysfunction of a Joint

§101.03 Reconstructive Surgery or Arthrodesis of a Major Weight-Bearing Joint

§101.04 Disorders of the Spine

§101.05 Amputation (due to any cause)

§101.06 Fracture of Femur, Tibia, Pelvis, Tarsals

§101.07 Fracture of Upper Extremity with Non-Union

§101.08 Soft Tissue Injury

MUSCULOSKELETAL,

GROWTH IMPAIRMENTS

MEDICAL ISSUES IN SOCIAL SECURITY DISABILITY 1-2

Part III – Forms

§1.02F Major Dysfunction of Joints

§1.03F Reconstructive Joint Surgery

§1.04F Disorders of the Spine

§1.05F Amputation from Any Cause

§1.06F Pelvis and Lower Extremity Fractures

§1.07F Upper Extremity Fractures

§1.08F Soft Tissue Injuries

§100.04F Growth Failure

MUSCULOSKELETAL,

GROWTH IMPAIRMENTS

1-3 MUSCULOSKELETAL SYSTEM AND GROWTH IMPAIRMENTS §1.00

Form Reference:

Forms 1.02, 1.03, 1.04, 1.05, 1.06, 1.07, 1.08, and

100.04 can be used to obtain optimal information from

treating physicians regarding the impairments discussed

in this chapter.

General Legal Text Cross-References:

See Bohr’s Social Security Issues Annotated (James

-



impairments.

Part I – Adults

§1.00 Musculoskeletal System

[The applicable Listing of Impairments introduces

each chapter. Author comments follow each Listing

subsection.]

SSA Listing of Impairments

A. Disorders of the musculoskeletal system may

result from hereditary, congenital, or acquired patho-

logic processes. Impairments may result from infectious,



developmental events, or neoplastic, vascular, or toxic/

metabolic diseases.

B. Loss of function.

1. General. Under this section, loss of function may

be due to bone or joint deformity or destruction from

any cause; miscellaneous disorders of the spine with

 

amputation; or fractures or soft tissue injuries, includ-

ing burns, requiring prolonged periods of immobility or

 

-

eral joint or axial arthritis or sequelae, or because of

extra-articular features, see §14.00B6. Impairments with



2. 

Author’s Note

[Loss of function should include SSA evaluation

of the claimant’s activities of daily living (ADLs),

as well as the formal medical evidence. While

the SSA may provide forms for the claimant or

their representative to complete, it should not be

assumed that the SSA will fully develop functional

capacities if not given quality information. Many

claimants carelessly just write “No” or “None” in

all the ADL form blanks when the SSA requests

information. Or the skimpy and obscure answers

are not revealing. It is in the best interest of the

claimant that they or their representative give the

SSA high-quality ADL information. There are

numerous SSA forms eliciting information about

ADLs and functional limitations, such as the SSA-

3368 Disability Report and the SSA-3369 Work



the SSA asks to have completed at the very begin-

ning of the disability determination process. Every



 

in a generalization.

Legal text cross-reference: See Social Secu-

rity Issues Annotated (Bohr), §204.8, regarding the

impact of daily activities on credibility.]

a. General. Regardless of the cause(s) of a muscu

-

loskeletal impairment, functional loss for purposes

  -

  

including pain associated with the underlying muscu-





for any reason, including pain associated with the

underlying musculoskeletal impairment. The inability



 

or be expected to last, for at least 12 months. For the

purposes of these criteria, consideration of the ability

to perform these activities must be from a physical

standpoint alone. When there is an inability to perform

these activities due to a mental impairment, the criteria





 

medical and other evidence in the case record, gener-

ally without developing additional evidence about the



listed as examples in §1.00B2b(2) and §1.00B2c.

b. 

(1) 

means an extreme limitation of the ability to walk;

i.e., an impairment(s) that interferes very seriously

with the individual’s ability to independently ini-

 

-

cient lower extremity functioning (see §1.00J) to