The Veteran's service-connected degenerative arthritis of the lumbosacral spine was manifested by forward flexion greater than 30 degrees and combined range of motion of the thoracolumbar spine greater than 120 degrees. The effective date for the award of service connection is assigned from September 15, 2008.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's lumbar spine disability was manifested by forward flexion greater than 30 degrees and combined range of motion of the thoracolumbar spine greater than 120 degrees, meeting the criteria for a 20 percent rating under the General Rating Formula for Diseases and Injuries of the Spine.
- Claimed conditions
- cervical spine disorder, rib disorder, left leg disorder, left hand disorder, right hand disorder, right shoulder disorder, joint pain, left elbow disorder, right elbow disorder, asthma
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- February 8, 2016
- Citation
- 1604451
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 1604451.
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.
- Partly granted
The Board has not made a final determination on the claims of service connection for inguinal hernia, PTSD, joint pain, fibromyalgia, left knee disability, right knee disability, tinnitus, chronic fatigue syndrome, respiratory disability, sleep disorder, IBS, and headaches. The claims are remanded to obtain additional evidence and determine if these conditions are related to service.
- Denied
The Veteran's respiratory disability, including asthma and COPD, is denied as service connection is not warranted due to the condition being solely attributed to smoking.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the cases of sleep apnea and asthma due to a failure to provide proper notice for a hearing.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the AOJ did not obtain all necessary opinions regarding whether the Veteran's symptoms are related to an undiagnosed illness or medically unexplained chronic multisymptom illness (MUCMI). The claims for service connection for fatigue, fibromyalgia, left elbow disorder, right elbow disorder, and sleep disorder are remanded for further development.
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