The Veteran's service-connected bilateral pes planus caused his lumbar spine arthritis, and the Board granted service connection for lumbar spine arthritis as secondary to service-connected bilateral pes planus, bilateral hallux valgus, bilateral sesamoiditis, and right sesamoidectomy with scar.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's back condition was proximately due to his service-connected bilateral pes planus, specifically the antalgic gait caused by the bilateral pes planus which led to falls resulting in his back conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbar spine arthritis
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 50%
- Decision date
- November 18, 2020
- Citation
- 20074094
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,977 · Granted: 27% (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 20074094.
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.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's lumbar spine arthritis is aggravated by his service-connected bilateral knee disabilities, and thus grants service connection for this condition.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeals for increased disability ratings for lumbar spine arthritis and right lower extremity sciatica have been dismissed due to the Veteran's withdrawal of his appeal.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected lumbar spine disability, right lower extremity radiculopathy, and left lower extremity radiculopathy have been granted. Additionally, the Veteran's sleep apnea has also been granted as secondary to his service-connected disabilities.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus. The claims for left shoulder rotator cuff tendonitis with AC joint sprain and lumbar spine arthritis are remanded due to duty-to-assist errors.
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