The Veteran's service-connected lumbar spine and bilateral knee disabilities are remanded for further evaluation due to the potential need for surgical intervention.
The deciding factor: The current severity of the Veteran's lumbar spine and bilateral knee disabilities may not reflect their actual condition as evidenced by recent treatment records indicating a worsening of his lumbar spine disability and the need for surgical intervention.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative Joint and Disc Disease of the Lumbar Spine, Degenerative Joint Disease of the Bilateral Knees
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 7, 2022
- Citation
- 22062188
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 22062188.
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.
- Denied
PTSD, a back condition, and flat feet were not granted service connection prior to October 22, 2008.,The Veteran's claims for these conditions were submitted after the one-year period following separation from active duty.
- Denied
The Veteran's lumbar spine disability was granted a 40% rating for the period prior to November 20, 2010. For the period on appeal, his claim for an increased rating was denied.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for higher ratings for his lumbar spine disability and radiculopathy of the sciatic nerves was denied. The RO assigned a 20 percent rating for degenerative joint and disc disease of the lumbar spine with lumbosacral strain, but denied increased ratings for radiculopathy.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation.
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