The Veteran's DDD and DJD of the lumbar spine have been granted an initial rating of 20 percent, effective March 14, 2003.
The deciding factor: The VA medical examinations confirmed that the Veteran's DDD and DJD of the lumbar spine resulted in forward flexion to at least 65 degrees, extension to at least 20 degrees, right and left lateral flexion to 20 degrees, with no abnormal gait or spinal contour. The combined range of motion was not greater than 120 degrees.
- Claimed conditions
- acquired psychiatric disability, degenerative disc disease (DDD) and degenerative joint disease (DJD) of the lumbar spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- October 19, 2010
- Citation
- 1038986
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 1038986.
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.
- Denied
The Veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including a left wrist fracture, bilateral hearing loss, Type II diabetes, bilateral glaucoma, OSA, cervical disc herniation, and other musculoskeletal issues are denied.,Service connection is not established for any of the claimed conditions.
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for his acquired psychiatric disability, finding that it is at least as likely as not due to or the result of his other service-connected disabilities.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for hypertension, equilibrium disorder (claimed as bad balance and equilibrium), bilateral restless leg syndrome, bilateral upper extremity tremor, melanoma, and acquired psychiatric disability due to a lack of adequate medical opinions regarding exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune and Agent Orange in Japan.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's claims for tinnitus and an acquired psychiatric disability were dismissed due to improper concurrent elections.,The Board found that the Veteran does not have a current diagnosis of back, sciatic nerve, right shoulder, foot, skin, left-hand, or right-hand disabilities. The claim for headaches was also denied.
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