Digestive and Social Security Disability
Digestive disorders that can cause pain, malnutrition, frequent restroom needs, or hospitalizations.
Digestive disorders can cause pain, malnutrition, anemia, incontinence, frequent restroom needs, and other limitations. Adult Listing 5.00 includes criteria for chronic liver disease, inflammatory bowel disease, intestinal failure, gastrointestinal bleeding, weight loss caused by digestive disease, and specified digestive-system transplants. The medical requirements vary by listing and may include laboratory findings, imaging or endoscopic evidence, obstruction, nutritional support, or other defined complications. Hepatitis is evaluated through the effects of chronic liver disease or other documented complications rather than under a separate hepatitis listing.
If a digestive impairment does not meet or medically equal a listing, SSA assesses residual functional capacity based on supported restroom needs, off-task time, attendance, pain, fatigue, nutritional effects, treatment side effects, surgery or hospitalization recovery, and other work-related limitations.
Explore digestive condition pages below, or return to the Disability Conditions Center.
Official SSA resource: Listing 5.00 — Digestive Disorders
Digestive condition guides
- Crohn’s Disease
Crohn’s disease is an inflammatory bowel disease. Listing 5.06 uses documented intestinal disease plus specified obstruction, laboratory, nutritional, perianal, or repeated-complication criteria.
- Ulcerative Colitis
Ulcerative colitis is evaluated under Listing 5.06 for inflammatory bowel disease. SSA requires objective evidence of inflammatory bowel disease and then applies the applicable obstruction, laboratory or nutritional, perianal, or repeated-complication criteria. If the listing is not met, SSA considers the remaining functional effects through residual functional capacity.
- Chronic Liver Disease
Listing 5.05 evaluates chronic liver disease by documented complications such as variceal bleeding, ascites, peritonitis, hepatorenal or hepatopulmonary syndrome, encephalopathy, or specified SSA CLD scores. A cirrhosis label is not an approval.
- Hepatitis
There is no adult listing titled hepatitis. SSA evaluates chronic viral or autoimmune hepatitis under Listing 5.05 when it causes chronic liver disease, and otherwise through residual functional capacity and extrahepatic complications.
- Gastroparesis
Gastroparesis has no dedicated adult listing. SSA may use Listing 5.08 for specified weight loss, Listing 5.07 when intestinal-failure parenteral-nutrition criteria are met, or residual functional capacity for nausea, vomiting, and attendance. A gastric-emptying study is not an approval.
- Colon Cancer
Listing 13.18 covers cancers of the large intestine from the ileocecal valve through the anal canal. Inoperable, unresectable, recurrent, distant-metastatic, or small-cell disease may meet the listing. Localized, successfully resected cancer does not automatically.
- Cystic Fibrosis
Listing 3.04 evaluates documented cystic fibrosis by specified spirometry, hospitalizations, pneumothorax, respiratory failure, pulmonary hemorrhage, pulse oximetry, or combined exacerbations including CF-related diabetes. A genetic diagnosis is not an approval.
- Endometriosis
Endometriosis has no dedicated adult listing. SSA requires medical evidence establishing the impairment, but surgery is not automatically required. SSA may consider applicable listings for documented complications and otherwise evaluates pain, fatigue, restroom needs, treatment effects, and other supported limitations through residual functional capacity.
- Inflammatory Arthritis
A broad group of immune-mediated joint and spine diseases, including psoriatic arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis. Listing 14.09 has several disease-pattern pathways.
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This page is general educational information about Social Security Disability as of the date of this publication. It is not legal or medical advice, does not create an attorney-client relationship, and does not guarantee results. Eligibility depends on individual facts and current Social Security rules.
