The Board has granted an initial rating of 40 percent for the Veteran's thoracolumbar spine DJD, effective from January 23, 2014.
The deciding factor: The VA examiners found that the Veteran's forward flexion was limited to 30 degrees or less, which meets the criteria for a 40 percent rating under the General Rating Formula for Diseases and Injuries of the Spine (General Rating Formula).
- Claimed conditions
- thoracolumbar spine degenerative joint disease (DJD)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- February 24, 2026
- Citation
- A26016408
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 A26016408.
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 Board has determined that the Veteran's claimed disabilities are not related to his service and have denied all of his claims.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining post-service medical records and providing new examinations to assess the severity of his disabilities.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeals for increased ratings for migraine headaches, thoracolumbar spine DJD, and cervical spine DJD have been withdrawn.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar myositis, psychoneurosis and conversion hysteria, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left thigh and pelvis with retained foreign bodies and scars, and residuals of shell fragment wounds of the right thigh and left leg. The veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
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