The Veteran's appeals for higher ratings for his thoracolumbar spine osteoarthritis and cervical spine osteoarthritis are being remanded due to the need for additional examination and evidence.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner is needed to provide a comprehensive assessment of the Veteran's current disability levels, including range of motion measurements and functional impact during flare-ups, which were not adequately addressed in previous examinations.
- Claimed conditions
- Thoracolumbar spine osteoarthritis, Cervical spine osteoarthritis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 16, 2018
- Citation
- 18118693
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 18118693.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for cervical spine osteoarthritis and tinnitus, finding no evidence linking these conditions to the Veteran's active duty service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded several claims related to the Veteran's service-connected lumbar spine disability, including issues for increased ratings and secondary radiculopathy. The claims are being returned for further development due to inadequate examination reports and incomplete treatment records.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for cervical spine, right knee, and left knee disabilities as secondary to service-connected hepatitis C due to new evidence presented in his September 2022 Appellate brief.
- Denied
The Veteran's cervical spine disability was rated at 10% prior to December 5, 2019 and at 30% from December 5, 2019 to July 1, 2021. The Board found a uniform 30% rating for the entire period prior to July 1, 2021. After July 1, 2021, the Veteran's cervical spine disability was rated at 20%. A higher rating is not warranted.
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