The Board denied the Veteran's request to restore a 40 percent disability rating for his degenerative joint and disc disease in the thoracolumbar spine, finding that there was not sustained and material improvement in his condition.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not demonstrate a sustained and material improvement in the lower back and spine disability around November 1, 2017.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative Joint and Disc Disease of the Thoracolumbar Spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- June 13, 2022
- Citation
- 22034373
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 22034373.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's thoracolumbar spine disability is rated at 20% prior to September 1, 2020 and 40% thereafter. The Board has remanded the case for further development regarding service connection for bilateral hearing loss and earlier effective dates for increased ratings of radiculopathy.
- Denied
The Veteran's back disability was granted a 20 percent rating prior to January 8, 2020. Ratings in excess of 10 percent were denied for both lower extremity femoral nerve radiculopathy.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's service-connected degenerative joint and disc disease of the thoracolumbar spine is not rated higher than 20 percent, and his service-connected chronic adjustment disorder is not rated higher than 30 percent. The claims for increased ratings are remanded.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for his service-connected degenerative joint and disc disease of the thoracolumbar spine was denied. The Board also found that there is insufficient evidence to grant service connection for fibromyalgia as secondary to his back disability, and remanded this issue for further development.
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