The Board has granted service connection for degenerative joint disease, L4-5 status post-laminectomy, finding that the Veteran's current disability is related to in-service back injuries and complaints of low back pain. The decision resolves reasonable doubt in favor of the Veteran.
The deciding factor: The Board found that there was a causal relationship between the Veteran's current degenerative joint disease, L4-5 status post-laminectomy, and his in-service back injuries and complaints of back pain, resolving reasonable doubt in favor of the Veteran.
- Claimed conditions
- degenerative joint disease, L4-5 status post-laminectomy
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 11, 2021
- Citation
- 21007949
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 21007949.
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.
- Partly granted
The Board has reopened the Veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including diabetes mellitus, degenerative joint disease, bilateral hearing loss, COPD, carpal tunnel syndromes, and kidney failure. The evidence submitted since the final decisions raises a reasonable possibility of substantiating these claims.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar myositis, psychoneurosis and conversion hysteria, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left thigh and pelvis with retained foreign bodies and scars, and residuals of shell fragment wounds of the right thigh and left leg. The veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an initial evaluation in excess of 10 percent for his service-connected coronary artery disease, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on the severity of his condition.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected musculoligamentous strain, right knee, is currently rated at 10 percent and the Board finds that a higher rating is not warranted.
Free starter guide for your own claim
Reading this because you were denied or under-rated? Get the plain-English next steps — your appeal options, the deadline that protects you, and how appeals like yours turn out. One email, no spam.
We will only use this to send the guide. No spam, unsubscribe any time. We never sell your information.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.