The Veteran's cervical spine disability is rated at 20 percent, and his thoracolumbar traumatic arthritis is rated at 40 percent. The Board granted the Veteran a TDIU rating effective from June 26, 2007.
The deciding factor: The VA examinations supported the current ratings for both disabilities based on their severity as of the effective date of service connection and without showing incapacitating episodes or objective neurologic abnormalities.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative Joint Disease (DJD) and Degenerative Disc Disease (DDD) of the cervical spine, Thoracolumbar traumatic arthritis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- August 9, 2011
- Citation
- 1129404
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 1129404.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for further development and readjudication due to insufficient medical opinions regarding the severity of his cervical spine and lumbar spine disabilities prior to August 23, 2011.
- Denied
The Board denied a rating greater than 20 percent for the appellant's service-connected cervical spine disability and an initial rating of more than 30 percent for his headaches. The claim for entitlement to TDIU was also denied.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the issues of service connection for cervical spine DJD and DDD, increased rating for right clubfoot with hammer toes and limited ankle motion since June 11, 2003, and TDIU prior to May 10, 2019. The Veteran is requested to provide release forms for relevant medical records and undergo VA evaluations.
- Denied
The Veteran's cervical spine disability is not rated higher than 20 percent, and his bilateral leg stress fractures do not warrant separate compensable ratings. The Board also found that the Veteran did not meet criteria for TDIU prior to March 1, 2012.
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