The Board has determined that the Veteran's DDD of the lumbar spine is related to service, granting service connection and a 10% rating. For his laceration scar of the right index finger, the Board found sufficient evidence of pain and instability, granting an increased rating to 10%. The effective date for these determinations has not been specified.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's DDD of the lumbar spine was determined to be related to service due to a credible lay statement of continuity of symptoms from boot camp. For his laceration scar, the Board found that it met the criteria for an unstable or painful scar under DC 7804.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative Disc Disease (DDD) of the lumbar spine, Laceration scar of the right index finger
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 10%
- Decision date
- January 11, 2018
- Citation
- 1802298
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 1802298.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for a higher rating for degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine and an earlier effective date for total disability based on individual unemployability.
- Denied
The Board denied an effective date prior to January 10, 2024, for the grant of service connection for degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine.
- Denied
The Board denied the claim for increased rating for degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, both prior to and from December 2, 2019.
- Granted
The Board granted an initial disability rating of 40 percent for degenerative disc disease (DDD) of the lumbar spine.
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