The Board has determined that there is a medical nexus between the veteran's current degenerative joint disease of the cervical spine and his service, making the claim well grounded. The VA will continue to seek additional records from the Navy medical facility in North Charleston.
The deciding factor: The evidence shows a history of neck injury during service which was noted as snapping and popping, consistent with degenerative joint disease.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative joint disease of the cervical spine, Degenerative joint disease of the hands, Degenerative joint disease of the elbows, Degenerative joint disease of the shoulders, Degenerative joint disease of the hips, Degenerative joint disease of the knees, Degenerative joint disease of the ankles, Degenerative joint disease of the feet
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 0%
- Decision date
- March 1, 2000
- Citation
- 0005585
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0005585.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a cervical spine disability to obtain an adequate medical opinion addressing both causation and aggravation.
- Denied
The Board denied higher ratings for the Veteran's knee and cervical spine disabilities, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating under applicable criteria.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected degenerative joint disease of the cervical spine has prevented him from securing and maintaining substantially gainful occupation, and he is granted a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) and special monthly compensation (SMC) at the housebound rate.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not preclude him from securing and following any substantially gainful employment prior to June 14, 2022.
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