The Veteran's degenerative disc disease, residuals of L4-L5 discectomy, is rated at 40 percent and his osteoarthritis of the right and left knees are each rated at 10 percent. The current ratings adequately reflect the severity of these conditions.
The deciding factor: The Veteran’s back disability does not meet criteria for a higher rating as there is no evidence of unfavorable ankylosis or limitation of motion to less than 30 degrees. For his knees, the flexion in both knees remains at least 120 degrees without additional functional loss.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative disc disease, residuals of L4-L5 discectomy, Osteoarthritis of the right knee, Osteoarthritis of the left knee
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- April 19, 2016
- Citation
- 1615851
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 1615851.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The claims for higher initial ratings for degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine, osteoarthritis of the right and left knees, and left ankle strain are remanded due to inadequate VA compensation examination reports.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for additional development, including obtaining a new VA examination to address the inadequacies of previous examinations and obtain any relevant private treatment records.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings and granted service connection for osteoarthritis of the left and right knees, limitation of extension.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the issues of entitlement to increased ratings for degenerative joint disease of the right knee and osteoarthritis of the left knee due to a need for another VA examination.
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