Supraventricular Tachycardia

DC 7010Cardiovascular38 CFR 4.104, DC 7010

A condition where the heart beats abnormally fast due to electrical signals that start above the ventricles, causing palpitations, dizziness, and shortness of breath. The VA rates based on the frequency of episodes documented on heart monitoring.

Rating Levels

Your supraventricular tachycardia causes chronic heart failure or severely limits your exercise capacity. Evaluated under the standard cardiac criteria based on METs and symptoms.

What the VA looks for

SVT causing chronic congestive heart failure
Severely limited exercise capacity from SVT
Workload of 3 METs or less with symptoms
Left ventricular ejection fraction less than 30%
Hospital records for SVT-related cardiac complications

Common Pitfalls

⚠Not getting episodes documented by ECG or Holter monitor — the VA rating requires documented episodes on cardiac monitoring, not just self-reported symptoms.
⚠Not reporting all episodes to your doctor when they occur — keep a symptom diary and seek medical attention during episodes so they can be recorded.
⚠Not documenting the functional impact during episodes such as dizziness, near-syncope, and inability to work — these details support your claim.
⚠If SVT causes chronic heart failure, you should be rated under the higher cardiac criteria (METs testing) rather than the episode-frequency criteria alone.

Related DBQ Forms

DBQ Heart Conditions

View evidence checklist →See secondary conditions →

Condition Rating Guides

Understand what the VA looks for at each rating level — loading conditions…

Rating Levels

Your supraventricular tachycardia causes chronic heart failure or severely limits your exercise capacity. Evaluated under the standard cardiac criteria based on METs and symptoms.

What the VA looks for

SVT causing chronic congestive heart failure
Severely limited exercise capacity from SVT
Workload of 3 METs or less with symptoms
Left ventricular ejection fraction less than 30%
Hospital records for SVT-related cardiac complications

Common Pitfalls

⚠Not getting episodes documented by ECG or Holter monitor — the VA rating requires documented episodes on cardiac monitoring, not just self-reported symptoms.

⚠Not reporting all episodes to your doctor when they occur — keep a symptom diary and seek medical attention during episodes so they can be recorded.

⚠Not documenting the functional impact during episodes such as dizziness, near-syncope, and inability to work — these details support your claim.

⚠If SVT causes chronic heart failure, you should be rated under the higher cardiac criteria (METs testing) rather than the episode-frequency criteria alone.