The Veteran's cervical spine disc disease with right shoulder pain and right forearm paresthesia is rated at 20 percent prior to June 23, 2004. Effective from June 23, 2004, the Veteran is rated at 20 percent for the orthopedic manifestations of cervical spine disc disease and 10 percent for the neurologic manifestations. The Veteran's degenerative joint diseases are each rated at 10 percent. Bilateral hearing loss is not compensable. Retinal detachments have no associated rating.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's service-connected conditions were evaluated based on their specific diagnostic codes and relevant regulations, resulting in the assigned ratings.
- Claimed conditions
- Cervical Spine Disc Disease, Degenerative Joint Disease of the Right Knee, Degenerative Joint Disease of the Left Knee, Esophagitis with a history of duodenitis, Bilateral Hearing Loss, Residuals of Bilateral Lattice Degeneration with Retinal Detachments
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 5, 2009
- Citation
- 0929264
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 0929264.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is granted as service-connected. The claims for alcohol abuse and psychiatric disorder are remanded for additional development, including a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of these conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to a need for a new VA examination to assess the current severity of the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss. The issue remains under direct service connection theory.
- Denied
The Veteran's hearing loss was rated at 30 percent, the highest non-compensable rating available. The Board found that his hearing loss did not warrant a higher rating based on VA examinations and medical records.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, finding that there was no evidence of a nexus between his current hearing loss and his active service. The Board noted that while he had complaints of earaches in service, these did not indicate a current disability.
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