The Veteran's service-connected disabilities have prevented her from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation, and the Board has granted total disability rating based on individual unemployability.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's service-connected disabilities prevent her from performing physical activities required by employment, including lifting, bending, standing, walking, climbing, grasping, typing, and reaching. Her tinnitus also interferes with her ability to obtain restful sleep.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbar spine intervertebral disc syndrome with degenerative arthritis, right upper extremity radiculopathy, left upper extremity radiculopathy, bladder dysfunction, degenerative disc disease of the cervical spine (post fusion), left lower extremity neuropathy, tinnitus, maxillary sinusitis, allergic rhinitis, scar residuals of the right wrist
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 90%
- Decision date
- October 17, 2019
- Citation
- 19178798
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,500 · Granted: 29% (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 19178798.
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 remanded the claims for service connection for hearing loss, tinnitus, and an acquired psychiatric disorder due to incomplete medical records and need for further examination.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for tinnitus, arthritis, and memory loss. The decision found no evidence linking these conditions to his military service.
- Granted
The Veteran's tinnitus is granted as service connected. The issues of foot disability and cardiovascular disorder are remanded for additional development.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus, finding that it is at least as likely as not that the Veteran experienced tinnitus during his active duty service.
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