The Veteran's claims for increased ratings of his lumbar and cervical spine disabilities were remanded due to lack of evidence showing the required limitations in range of motion or ankylosis.
The deciding factor: The VA examinations did not provide sufficient information regarding the Veteran’s range of motion or presence of ankylosis, which are necessary for a higher rating under the General Rating Formula for Diseases and Injuries of the Spine.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative Arthritis, Lumbar Spine, Degenerative Arthritis, Cervical Spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 23, 2021
- Citation
- 21009915
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 21009915.
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.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed the appeal for service connection of PTSD due to the Veteran's withdrawal. The claim of increased rating for lumbar spine disability is remanded.
- Partly granted
The Veteran's initial claim for anxiety disorder was granted and assigned a 30 percent rating effective December 18, 2019. The appeal is now remanded to determine if the Veteran warrants an increased rating.,Both issues of entitlement to higher ratings for degenerative arthritis, cervical spine and service connection for headaches secondary to this condition are also being remanded due to duty-to-assist errors.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities rendered him incapable of securing or following a substantially gainful occupation prior to November 2, 2016. Therefore, the Board has granted entitlement to Total Disability Retirement based on Unemployability (TDIU) prior to that date.
- Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for stomach and eye problems, as they are not related to his service or a service-connected disability. The other issues on appeal have been addressed but no rating assigned.
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