The Board denied the Veteran's appeal for a higher disability rating for her service-connected cervical strain, finding that the evidence did not support a rating in excess of 20 percent.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's cervical strain was found to be manifested by forward flexion of the cervical spine limited to 30 degrees, which does not meet the criteria for a higher rating under the applicable diagnostic codes.
- Claimed conditions
- cervical strain
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- April 18, 2025
- Citation
- A25036086
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,893 · Granted: 31% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation A25036086.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's service connection claims for various conditions were granted effective from July 1, 2020.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The Veteran's appeals for service connection were dismissed due to a procedural defect in filing the claims on the correct form.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for migraine headaches and cervical strain due to a duty to assist error. The AOJ failed to obtain VA medical opinions addressing the etiology of these disabilities.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied an earlier effective date for service connection of chronic neck pain and cervical strain, finding that the Veteran did not file a claim for these conditions until June 28, 2013.
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