The Board has determined that the Veteran's degenerative joint disease of the lumbar spine warrants a 20 percent rating, and her radiculopathy of the right and left lower extremities each warrant separate 20 percent ratings.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's degenerative joint disease of the lumbar spine resulted in forward flexion limited to 80 degrees, extension limited to 25 degrees, lateral flexion limited to 30 degrees on each side, and rotation limited to 30 degrees on each side. These findings meet the criteria for a 20 percent rating under the General Rating Formula for Diseases and Injuries of the Spine.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative Joint Disease of the Lumbar Spine, Radiculopathy of the Right Lower Extremity, Radiculopathy of the Left Lower Extremity
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- July 7, 2017
- Citation
- 1725983
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 1725983.
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.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed the appeals for discontinuance of TDIU, reduction of disability rating for acquired psychiatric disorder, and reduction of disability rating for radiculopathy of the left lower extremity due to lack of response from the Veteran within the required timeframe.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for an increased rating in excess of 20 percent for degenerative joint disease of the lumbar spine is denied.,The Veteran's claim for an initial increased rating in excess of 10 percent for right knee degenerative arthritis is remanded due to inadequate examination report.
- Granted
The reduction of the Veteran's lumbar spine and cervical spine disability ratings from 40% to 20% was improper, and the prior ratings are restored.
- Denied
The Board found that the evidence did not show an actual improvement in the Veteran's conditions, and thus denied the reduction requests for his service-connected disabilities.
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