The Veteran's lumbar spine disability is rated at 40 percent, effective April 8, 2014. The rating for radiculopathy of the right lower extremity remains at 20 percent. Prostatitis and epididymitis to include erectile dysfunction are rated at 20 percent from June 1, 2014 to August 16, 2015; 40 percent from August 17, 2015 to May 11, 2017. The Veteran's TDIU claim for the period prior to June 1, 2014 is granted.
The deciding factor: The Veteran’s lumbar spine disability meets the criteria for a 40 percent rating under the General Rating Formula for Diseases and Injuries of the Spine due to forward flexion limited to 30 degrees. The other conditions are rated based on their specific diagnostic codes, with radiculopathy receiving a separate rating.
- Claimed conditions
- facet joint osteoarthritis, degenerative disc disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- January 29, 2019
- Citation
- 19106788
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,960 · Granted: 36% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 19106788.
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 claim for service connection for a back condition, including degenerative disc disease and scoliosis, due to lack of current disability evidence.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the VA examinations related to the Veteran's lower back condition and surgical scars are inadequate, necessitating a remand for further evaluation.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection of a low back disability and bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy, finding inadequate medical opinions due to failure to consider all relevant evidence.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to predecisional duty-to-assist errors, including inadequate medical opinions and missed VA examinations. The Veteran's claim for service connection for a back condition is being returned to the RO for further action.
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