The Veteran's DDD of the lumbar spine is rated at 40 percent, but no higher. The effective date for service connection of right knee osteoarthritis is denied. Right knee and ankle disabilities are remanded for further examination.
The deciding factor: The Board found that a rating in excess of 40 percent for DDD of the lumbar spine was not warranted due to lack of unfavorable ankylosis, but granted a 40 percent rating based on limitation of motion. The effective date for service connection of right knee osteoarthritis is denied as there was no communication prior to July 27, 2012 expressing intent to file a claim.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative Disc Disorder (DDD) of the lumbar spine, Right knee osteoarthritis, Residuals of right ankle injury
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 9, 2019
- Citation
- 19152801
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,287 · 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 19152801.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for right knee instability is granted, with a 30 percent rating. The claims for increased ratings for right knee osteoarthritis (flexion) and left hip strain, osteoarthritis and bursitis based on painful motion are denied. The claim for an increased rating for right ankle osteoarthritis is also denied.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's right knee condition is etiologically related to service and grants service connection for this disability.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for higher ratings for his right knee disability from April 16, 2013 to March 15, 2016 was denied as the evidence did not show flexion limited to 30 degrees or more.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's right and left knee disabilities had their onset during active service, granting her claims for service connection.
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