The Board denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for cervical, thoracic and lumbar spine degenerative joint disease, left ear hearing loss disability, tinnitus, right knee chondromalacia patella prior to July 15, 2002, a rating in excess of zero percent for right knee chondromalacia patella prior to March 1, 2007, and a rating in excess of 30 percent for status post right knee arthroplasty with chondromalacia patella and degenerative joint disease prior to April 1, 2010. The effective dates were not established.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's carpal tunnel syndrome was found to be unrelated to service as the symptoms did not begin during or immediately after service and there is no evidence of chronic residuals from his in-service injuries.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative joint disease of the cervical spine, Degenerative joint disease of the thoracic spine, Degenerative joint disease of the lumbar spine, Left wrist carpal tunnel syndrome
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 24, 2012
- Citation
- 1225651
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 1225651.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied extraschedular ratings for the Veteran's service-connected lumbar spine and lower extremity radiculopathy disabilities, as well as a total disability rating based on individual unemployability prior to February 3, 2011.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for an increased rating of his low back disability is being remanded due to the reduction in evaluation from 40 percent to 20 percent effective May 31, 2014. The RO needs to provide updated VA treatment records and schedule a VA examination to determine the current severity of the disability.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the VA examiner's opinion regarding service connection for degenerative joint disease of the cervical spine is incomplete and requires further clarification. The case is being remanded to obtain an addendum opinion addressing whether the Veteran's current condition is related to his military service, including two claimed inservice collision injuries.
- Denied
The Veteran's cervical strain with spinal fusion is rated at 20 percent, and the Board denied an increased rating.,The Veteran's degenerative joint disease of the lumbar spine is rated at 20 percent, and the Board denied an increased rating.
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