The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine and right knee strain, have rendered him unable to secure or follow substantially gainful employment. The Board has granted a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU).
The deciding factor: The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, particularly his back issues and knee problems, preclude him from engaging in any substantial gainful employment.
- Claimed conditions
- degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, right knee strain, dermatitis and psoriasis, surgical scar, mid thoracic and lumbar spine, tardive dyskinesia, anxiety disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 60%
- Decision date
- August 15, 2019
- Citation
- 19163255
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 19163255.
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 Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension and increased rating for anxiety disorder have been denied. The Board found that there is no evidence of a current disability meeting the criteria for hypertension, and the Veteran's anxiety disorder does not meet the criteria for a higher rating.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for service connection for left knee strain, right knee strain, shin splints of the right leg, and shin splints of the left leg are being remanded due to a failure to obtain VA examinations and medical nexus opinions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's tinnitus was granted service connection. The Board found the VA audiological examination inadequate for adjudicative purposes and remanded for an adequate VA audiological examination to determine if the Veteran has bilateral hearing loss. Service connection for PTSD, anxiety disorder, and depression is also remanded as there are insufficient competent medical evidence on file.
- Granted
The Veteran's hypertension, left knee patellofemoral syndrome, and right knee patellofemoral syndrome have been granted service connection as secondary to his service-connected disabilities. The lumbar spine disability has also been granted but the effective date is not specified.
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