The Veteran's claims for increased evaluations for DDD of the lumbosacral spine and chronic left knee musculoskeletal pain were denied as his conditions did not warrant a rating in excess of 20 percent.
The deciding factor: The evidence showed that the Veteran's lumbar spine disability was manifested by forward flexion limited to 60 degrees, which is within the range for a 20 percent evaluation. His left knee disability was also rated as 10 percent disabling based on painful motion. The Board found no basis to grant higher ratings under any applicable criteria.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative Disc Disease (DDD) of the lumbosacral spine, Chronic left knee musculoskeletal pain
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- October 21, 2021
- Citation
- 21064823
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 21064823.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's DDD of the lumbosacral spine is now rated at 40 percent effective December 22, 2010.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board vacated part of its decision denying a rating in excess of 10 percent for service-connected DDD of the lumbosacral spine, and remanded it due to a lack of contemporaneous examination. The claim is now pending again.
- Partly granted
The Veteran was awarded a 10% rating for DDD of the lumbosacral spine effective August 16, 2018. However, he did not receive proper notice of a scheduled VA examination in June 2000 and his service connection claim is still pending.
- Granted
The Veteran's DDD of the lumbosacral spine is granted a higher evaluation to 40 percent. The evaluations for bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy remain at 10 percent.
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