The Board granted service connection for Degenerative Disc Disease (DDD) other than intervertebral disc syndrome (IVDS), resolving reasonable doubt in the Veteran's favor.
The deciding factor: The evidence was approximately evenly balanced as to whether the Veteran's DDD other than IVDS is related to his active duty service, and reasonable doubt was resolved in the Veteran's favor.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative Disc Disease (DDD) other than intervertebral disc syndrome (IVDS)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 100%
- Decision date
- December 9, 2025
- Citation
- A25105809
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,604 · Granted: 65% (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 A25105809.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for her service-connected back and right lower extremity radiculopathy disabilities were denied. The rating for DDD other than IVDS, status post micro discectomy at L5-S1 was not granted as it did not result in unfavorable ankylosis of the entire thoracolumbar spine or the entire spine. Ratings for RLE radiculopathy affecting the femoral and sciatic nerves were also denied.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's appeal for an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for degenerative disc disease (DDD) other than intervertebral disc syndrome (IVDS).
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for a rating in excess of 40 percent for service-connected DDD other than IVDS and entitlement to TDIU, as the May 2023 VA examination was found inadequate.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has ordered a remand to obtain a more complete medical opinion regarding the nature and etiology of the Veteran's claimed low back disability, including whether it is related to service or aggravated by a service-connected condition.
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