The Board has remanded the issues of service connection for bilateral knee disorder and a rating in excess of 10 percent for sacroiliitis due to additional evidentiary development. The current rating for sacroiliitis is 10 percent, effective from November 23, 2010.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's service-connected sacroiliitis does not meet the criteria for a higher rating as it does not result in forward flexion of the lumbar spine to at least 60 degrees or less, combined range of motion less than 120 degrees, or muscle spasm, guarding or localized tenderness resulting in abnormal gait or abnormal spinal contour.
- Claimed conditions
- sacroiliitis, bilateral knee disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 10%
- Decision date
- December 29, 2020
- Citation
- 20081484
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,170 · Granted: 38% (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 20081484.
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 Board has granted service connection for a thoracolumbar spine disability, but denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss disorder, gout, multiple painful joints, bilateral ankle disorder, bilateral knee disorder, and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that a remand is necessary to obtain an addendum medical opinion regarding the etiology of the Veteran's back disability, specifically addressing whether there was aggravation during service and if the lumbar spondylosis, lumbar radiculopathy, sacroiliitis, and failed back surgery syndrome had onset in service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided that service connection is granted for fibromyalgia and tinnitus. The remaining claims of service connection for a back disorder, bilateral knee disorder, bilateral hip disorder, and cervical cancer are remanded due to procedural errors.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the Veteran's claims for service connection related to back, hip, knee, and foot disorders should be remanded due to a duty to assist error. The VA examinations are needed to determine if these conditions are related to service or caused by other service-connected disabilities.
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