The Board finds that the veteran's current degenerative joint disease of the thoracic and cervical spine is not related to service, as there is no evidence of a chronic condition during service or post-service continuity of symptoms. The lumbar spine issue was previously addressed in another decision.
The deciding factor: There is no medical evidence linking the veteran's current degenerative joint disease of the thoracic and cervical spine to his military service.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative Joint Disease of the Cervical Spine, Degenerative Joint Disease of the Lumbar Spine, Degenerative Joint Disease of the Thoracic Spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 15, 2006
- Citation
- 0614094
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,643 · Granted: 15% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 0614094.
What this means for you
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for an increased rating in excess of 20 percent for degenerative joint disease of the lumbar spine is denied.,The Veteran's claim for an initial increased rating in excess of 10 percent for right knee degenerative arthritis is remanded due to inadequate examination report.
- Granted
The reduction of the Veteran's lumbar spine and cervical spine disability ratings from 40% to 20% was improper, and the prior ratings are restored.
- Denied
The Veteran's degenerative joint disease of the cervical spine was found to not meet the criteria for a higher disability rating, as it did not result in forward flexion of 15 degrees or less and there was no evidence of favorable ankylosis of the entire cervical spine.
- Denied
The Veteran's thoracolumbar spine disability is rated at 20 percent, and the appeal for an increased rating has been denied. The Board also found that TDIU was granted as of January 16, 2010, but not earlier.
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