The Veteran's current diagnoses of degenerative disc disease (DDD) of his cervical spine and associated radiculopathy of the left upper extremity are granted as service connected.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the Veteran’s current diagnoses were related to his complaints in service, including a fall from a truck during active duty which resulted in neck stiffness with pain radiating to his left shoulder.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative disc disease (DDD) of cervical spine, Radiculopathy of left upper extremity
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 30, 2019
- Citation
- 19141518
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,669 · Granted: 23% (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 19141518.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that there is insufficient evidence to substantiate a reasonable possibility that the Veteran is unemployable due to service-connected disabilities prior to October 19, 2011. The case is being remanded for referral to the Director of Compensation Service for extraschedular consideration.
- Denied
The Board has denied a higher rating for the right knee meniscectomy and granted effective dates of November 25, 2003 for service connection of upper extremity radiculopathies. The cervical strain claim is remanded.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for cervical spine degeneration and associated radiculopathy was denied, as the evidence did not show limitation of motion or ankylosis that would warrant a higher rating. The claim for TDIU based on service-connected disabilities was also denied due to the presence of other service-connected conditions.
- Granted
The Veteran's degenerative disc disease of the cervical spine is considered to have started during his combat service in Vietnam and has been recurring since then. The Board found that the Veteran's current condition can be linked to his military service, thus granting service connection.
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