The Board denied an initial rating in excess of 20 percent for degenerative arthritis of the spine based on the Veteran's limited range of motion, which did not meet the criteria for a higher rating.
The deciding factor: The October 2016 VA examination and subsequent medical records showed that the Veteran's forward flexion was limited to 60 degrees at most, which did not meet the criteria for a higher rating under the applicable DCs.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative arthritis of the spine (back disability)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 17, 2025
- Citation
- 25015006
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 868 · Granted: 42% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 25015006.
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.
- Granted
The Board granted initial ratings of 20 percent for degenerative arthritis of the spine, and 10 percent for left hip femoral acetabular impingement syndrome (both impairment and limitation of extension), as well as an initial rating of 10 percent for hypertension. The claim for a higher rating for PTSD was denied.
- Remanded (sent back)
The claim for an initial rating in excess of 20 percent for degenerative arthritis of the spine is remanded to provide the Veteran with a VA examination.
- Granted
The Board has granted effective dates of July 27, 2021 for the awards of a 20% rating for degenerative arthritis of the spine (back disability), service connection for left lower extremity radiculopathy, and service connection for right lower extremity radiculopathy.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for his back disability from February 25, 2020, was denied. The effective date prior to February 25, 2020, for the award of service connection for right lower extremity radiculopathy was also denied.
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