The Board has granted a 20 percent evaluation for degenerative joint disease of the lumbosacral spine, and denied increased evaluations for degenerative joint disease of the right knee and left knee.
The deciding factor: The VA examination showed forward flexion limited to 60 degrees in the lumbosacral spine, which corresponds to a 20 percent evaluation under the General Rating Formula for Diseases and Injuries of the Spine. The veteran's complaints were consistent with this finding, and there was no evidence of ankylosis or limitation of motion beyond what is contemplated by the current rating.
- Claimed conditions
- degenerative joint disease of the lumbosacral spine, degenerative joint disease of the right knee, degenerative joint disease of the left knee
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- December 18, 2006
- Citation
- 0639298
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 0639298.
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
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- Remanded (sent back)
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- Remanded (sent back)
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- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for degenerative joint disease of the left (non-dominant) shoulder, right knee, and left knee are being remanded due to a failure to issue a Supplemental Statement of the Case (SSOC).,The Veteran's claim for TDIU is also being remanded as it was denied in the most recent rating decision without an SSOC having been issued.
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