The Board has denied an increased rating for chronic thoracolumbar strain with degenerative disc disease and has remanded issues of service connection for right hip, left hip, and left knee conditions.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's current disabilities are not related to his service-connected thoracolumbar strain with degenerative disc disease.
- Claimed conditions
- chronic thoracolumbar strain with degenerative disc disease, right hip mild degenerative joint disease (claimed as right hip condition), left hip mild degenerative joint disease (claimed as left hip condition), left knee strain (claimed as left knee condition)
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 5, 2018
- Citation
- 18132004
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 18132004.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for a higher initial disability rating prior to August 22, 2014, for chronic thoracolumbar strain with degenerative disc disease is denied.,The Veteran's claim for SMC under 38 U.S.C. § 1114 (s) is denied.,The Veteran's claims of entitlement to a higher initial disability rating prior to October 16, 2020, for cervical spine disability and TDIU prior to November 12, 2018 are remanded.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for a low back disorder prior to August 14, 2014 and entitlement to TDIU prior to November 12, 2018 due to insufficient evidence.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the cases for further development and examination. The Veteran's claims of service connection for asbestosis, lumbosacral strain, left knee strain, and right knee strain are pending.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities prevented him from securing and following substantially gainful employment due to his orthopedic conditions, hearing loss, and tinnitus.
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