The veteran's claims for increased ratings were denied. The RO granted service connection for DDD of the lumbar spine and assigned a 10 percent initial rating, effective October 1, 2002.
The deciding factor: The VA examination reports did not show any neurological findings or incapacitating episodes that would warrant higher ratings under the applicable diagnostic codes. The veteran's symptoms were limited to pain, limitation of motion, and painful motion without other significant functional impairment.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative Disc Disease (DDD) of the Lumbar Spine, Degenerative Disc Disease (DDD) of the Cervical Spine, Right Shoulder Impingement Syndrome
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 16, 2008
- Citation
- 0823443
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 0823443.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for a right shoulder disability, finding that the Veteran's current symptoms are related to his in-service injury.
- Granted
The Veteran's right shoulder disorder was denied service connection initially, but new evidence received after the March 2008 rating decision is relevant to this issue. The Board finds that a current diagnosis for right shoulder impingement syndrome exists and that it did not have its onset during service or otherwise be related to service.
- Denied
The Veteran was granted service connection for various conditions, but the appeal regarding an earlier effective date for benefits under the VA PCAFC related to a June 2023 application is denied.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the VA examinations and opinions provided do not comply with the remand directives. Therefore, another remand is necessary to obtain the requested retrospective estimates for the Veteran's right shoulder and lumbar spine disabilities.
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