We use these listings to evaluate skin disorders that may result from hereditary, congenital, or acquired pathological processes. The kinds of impairments covered by these listings are: Ichthyosis, bullous diseases, chronic infections of the skin or mucous membranes, dermatitis, hidradenitis suppurativa, genetic photosensitivity disorders, and burns.

When we evaluate the existence and severity of your skin disorder, we generally need information about the onset, duration, frequency of flare ups, and prognosis of your skin disorder; the location, size, and appearance of lesions; and, when applicable, history of exposure to toxins, allergens, or irritants, familial incidence, seasonal variation, stress factors, and your ability to function outside of a highly protective environment. To confirm the diagnosis, we may need laboratory findings (for example, results of a biopsy obtained independently of Social Security disability evaluation or blood tests) or evidence from other medically acceptable methods consistent with the prevailing state of medical knowledge and clinical practice.

We generally base our assessment of severity on the extent of your skin lesions, the frequency of flare ups of your skin lesions, how your symptoms (including pain) limit you, the extent of your treatment, and how your treatment affects you.

1. Extensive skin lesions. Extensive skin lesions are those that involve multiple body sites or critical body areas, and result in a very serious limitation. Examples of extensive skin lesions that result in a very serious limitation include but are not limited to:

a. Skin lesions that interfere with the motion of your joints and that very seriously limit your use of more than one extremity; that is, two upper extremities, two lower extremities, or one upper and one lower extremity.

b. Skin lesions on the palms of both hands that very seriously limit your ability to do fine and gross motor movements.

c. Skin lesions on the soles of both feet, the perineum, or both inguinal areas that very seriously limit your ability to ambulate.

2. Frequency of flare ups. If you have skin lesions, but they do not meet the requirements of any of the listings in this body system, you may still have an impairment that results in marked and severe functional limitations when we consider your condition over time, especially if your flare ups result in extensive skin lesions, as defined in DI 34228.005C.1. of this section. Therefore, if you have frequent flare ups, we may find that your impairment(s) is medically equal to one of these listings even though you have some periods during which your condition is in remission. We will consider how frequent and serious your flare ups are, how quickly they resolve, and how you function between flare ups to determine whether you have marked and severe functional limitations that have lasted for a continuous period of at least 12 months or that can be expected to last for a continuous period of at least 12 months. We will also consider the frequency of your flare ups when we determine whether you have a severe impairment and when we need to assess functional equivalence.

3. Symptoms (including pain). Symptoms (including pain) may be important factors contributing to the severity of your skin disorder(s). We assess the impact of symptoms as explained in §§ 404.1528, 404.1529, 416.928, and 416.929 of this chapter.

4. Treatment. We assess the effects of medication, therapy, surgery, and any other form of treatment you receive when we determine the severity and duration of your impairment(s). Skin disorders frequently respond to treatment; however, response to treatment can vary widely, with some impairments becoming resistant to treatment. Some treatments can have side effects that can in themselves result in limitations.

a. We assess the effects of continuing treatment as prescribed by determining if there is improvement in the symptoms, signs, and laboratory findings of your disorder, and if you experience side effects that result in functional limitations. To assess the effects of your treatment, we may need information about:

1. i.  

   The treatment you have been prescribed (for example, the type, dosage, method and frequency of administration of medication or therapy);

2. ii.  

   Your response to the treatment;

3. iii.  

   Any adverse effects of the treatment; and

4. iv.  

   The expected duration of the treatment.

b. Because treatment itself or the effects of treatment may be temporary, in most cases sufficient time must elapse to allow us to evaluate the impact and expected duration of treatment and its side effects. Except under 108.07 and 108.08, you must follow continuing treatment as prescribed for at least 3 months before your impairment can be determined to meet the requirements of a skin disorder listing. (If you are not undergoing treatment or did not have treatment for 3 months, see 108.00H.) We consider your specific response to treatment when we evaluate the overall severity of your impairment.

When your impairment affects your skin and has effects in other body systems, we first evaluate the predominant feature of your impairment under the appropriate body system. Examples include, but are not limited to the following:

1. Tuberous sclerosis primarily affects the brain. The predominant features are seizures, which we evaluate under the neurological listings in 111.00, and developmental delays or other mental disorders, which we evaluate under the mental disorders listings in 112.00.

2. Malignant tumors of the skin (for example, malignant melanoma) are cancers, or neoplastic diseases, which we evaluate under the listings in 113.00.

3. Connective tissue disorders and other immune system disorders (for example, systemic lupus erythematosus, scleroderma, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, and Sjögren’s syndrome) often involve more than one body system. We first evaluate these disorders under the immune system listings in 114.00. We evaluate lupus erythematosus under 114.02, scleroderma under 114.04, symptomatic HIV infection under 114.08, and Sjögren’s syndrome under 114.03, 114.09, or any other appropriate listing in section 114.00.

4. Disfigurement or deformity resulting from skin lesions may result in loss of sight, hearing, speech, and the ability to chew (mastication). We evaluate these impairments and their effects under the special senses and speech listings in 102.00 and the digestive system listings in 105.00. Facial disfigurement or other physical deformities may also have effects we evaluate under the mental disorders listings in 112.00, such as when they affect mood or social functioning.

5. We evaluate erythropoietic porphyries under the hemic and lymphatic listings in 107.00.

6. We evaluate hemangiomas associated with thrombocytopenia and hemorrhage (for example, Kasabach-Merritt syndrome) involving coagulation defects, under the hemic and lymphatic listings in 107.00. But, when hemangiomas impinge on vital structures or interfere with function, we evaluate their primary effects under the appropriate body system.

Electrical, chemical, or thermal burns frequently affect other body systems; for example, musculoskeletal, special senses and speech, respiratory, cardiovascular, renal, neurological, or mental. Consequently, we evaluate burns the way we evaluate other disorders that can affect the skin and other body systems, using the listing for the predominant feature of your impairment. For example, if your soft tissue injuries are under continuing surgical management (as defined in 101.00M), we will evaluate your impairment under 101.08. However, if your burns do not meet the requirements of 101.08 and you have extensive skin lesions that result in a very serious limitation (as defined in 108.00C.1.) that has lasted or can be expected to last for a continuous period of at least 12 months, we will evaluate them under 108.08.

For all of these skin disorder listings except 108.07 and 108.08, we will find that your impairment meets the duration requirement if your skin disorder results in extensive skin lesions that persist for at least 3 months despite continuing treatment as prescribed. By persist, we mean that the longitudinal clinical record shows that, with few exceptions, your lesions have been at the level of severity specified in the listing. For 108.07A, we will presume that you meet the duration requirement. For 108.07B and 108.08, we will consider all of the relevant medical and other information in your case record to determine whether your skin disorder meets the duration requirement.

1. These listings are only examples of common skin disorders that we consider severe enough to result in marked and severe functional limitations. For most of these listings, if you do not have continuing treatment as prescribed, if your treatment has not lasted for at least 3 months, or if you do not have extensive skin lesions that have persisted for at least 3 months, your impairment cannot meet the requirements of these skin disorder listings. (This provision does not apply to 108.07 and 108.08.) However, we may still find that you are disabled because your impairment(s) meets the requirements of a listing in another body system, medically equals (see §§ 404.1526 and 416.926 of this chapter) the severity of a listing, or functionally equals the severity of the listings.

2. If you have not received ongoing treatment or do not have an ongoing relationship with the medical community despite the existence of a severe impairment(s), or if your skin lesions have not persisted for at least 3 months but you are undergoing continuing treatment as prescribed, you may still have an impairment(s) that meets a listing in another body system or that medically equals a listing. If you do not have an impairment(s) that meets or medically equals a listing, we will consider whether your impairment(s) functionally equals the listings. (See § 416.924 of this chapter.) When we decide whether you continue to be disabled, we use the rules in § 416.994a of this chapter.

108.01 Category of Impairments, Skin Disorders

108.02 Ichthyosis, with extensive skin lesions that persist for at least 3 months despite continuing treatment as prescribed.

108.03 Bullous disease (for example, pemphigus, erythema multiforme bullosum, epidermolysis bullosa, bullous pemphigoid, dermatitis herpetiformis), with extensive skin lesions that persist for at least 3 months despite continuing treatment as prescribed.

108.04 Chronic infections of the skin or mucous membranes, with extensive fungating or extensive ulcerating skin lesions that persist for at least 3 months despite continuing treatment as prescribed.

108.05 Dermatitis (for example, psoriasis, dyshidrosis, atopic dermatitis, exfoliative dermatitis, allergic contact dermatitis), with extensive skin lesions that persist for at least 3 months despite continuing treatment as prescribed.

108.06 Hidradenitis suppurativa, with extensive skin lesions involving both axillae, both inguinal areas, or the perineum that persist for at least 3 months despite continuing treatment as prescribed.

108.07 Genetic photosensitivity disorders, established by clinical and laboratory findings as described in 108.00E.

A. Xeroderma pigmentosum. Consider the individual disabled from birth.

B. Other genetic photosensitivity disorders, with:

1. Extensive skin lesions that have lasted or can be expected to last for a continuous period of at least 12 months,

OR

2. Inability to function outside of a highly protective environment for a continuous period of at least 12 months (see 108.00E.2.).

108.08 Burns, with extensive skin lesions that have lasted or can be expected to last for a continuous period of at least 12 months. (See 108.00F).