The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for his lumbar spine disability was granted, with the effective date being November 17, 2008. The claims for increased ratings of his left and right knee disabilities were not addressed in this decision.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found that the Veteran had forward flexion limited to 30 degrees with pain starting at 25 degrees, extension limited to 15 degrees with pain at 10 degrees, and lateral flexion and rotation each limited to 10 degrees with pain at 10 degrees. This met the criteria for a 40 percent rating under the General Rating Formula for Diseases and Injuries of the Spine.
- Claimed conditions
- osteoarthritis of the lumbar spine with lumbosacral strain, osteoarthritis of the left knee, osteoarthritis of the right knee
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- October 27, 2009
- Citation
- 0940817
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 0940817.
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 claim for service connection for osteoarthritis of the left knee is granted. The claim for service connection for osteoarthritis of the left shoulder is remanded.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and a TDIU are being remanded due to procedural errors in the development process. The VA is required to provide an examination to assess the severity of his service-connected left knee disorders, including any meniscal disability or patellar instability.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for gout, bilateral foot and osteoarthritis of the left knee. The conditions are found to be secondary to the Veteran's service-connected PTSD.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew his appeal regarding the rating reductions for lateral instability of the right knee and osteoarthritis of the right knee, so these issues are dismissed.
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